Dear Teacher
by Rimnerel Ayasugi
Summary: CHAPTER 21 FINALLY UP! The musings of one sixteen year old boy about his feelings for his English teacher while writing a letter of confessions opens the door to more than he ever expected to happen. Rating subject to change later.
1. Prologue

DEAR TEACHER

Author's note: Well, besides that this idea just popped up in my head, and I've been reading so much British literature lately, the style will seem different from what I usually write. Oh and for the most part…this is my second Kai/Kenny fic, hurrah! This story is just a test run to see if everyone likes this story just as much as my Tala/Kenny pairings. I sort of got bored working on that pairing, and this I find is another pairing that comes to mind often since I don't read about this pairing too often. Maybe I've seen a total of...five? Well, anyway, I hope everyone likes this one too.

Disclaimer: I do not own any Beyblade characters that wish to appear in this piece. All rights, besides the story belong to Takao Aoki. The story is mine, so hands off!

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Prologue

Maybe I'm a little crazy…okay, maybe I'm more than a little crazy, I think sitting here at my desk doing my English work. Well, it's not really work, it's more so me listening to my English teacher as he reads the Romantic poet, John Keats' poem "Ode on Melancholy". My hand continues to inscribe words on the sheet of paper on my desk I stare down occasionally to make sure no words flowed together. When satisfied my cursive script was constant on the pale blue lines, I continued listening.

Or as I said before, I continue to try to focus on those words flowing from that deep, alluring voice. Right now our class is in the Romantic period of British Literature, irony for my train of thoughts at this brief moment, over the poem cleverly chosen. Sitting on my paper is my own ode on melancholy being composed. Such a hard enough task, especially when you have to focus on the poem, instead of the mouth the words are coming from.

Do you want to know my dilemma? I wouldn't blame you if you didn't after all I'm no one really special. I'm just a four foot eleven inches—haven't even broke five feet yet despite I'm already sixteen years old—high sophomore at the local high school. I'm no where near as popular with the mass of four hundred students attending. Hell, I've just got three best friends in the entire sophomore class. On top of that, whenever someone sees me in the hallway, they always assume I'm a freshman and try to assist me, which has to be some testament to just how unimportant I am.

Let's see…besides my short stature, I wear glasses, of course I don't really need to wear them all the time, just for small print and far away objects. Everyone says I should get contacts, even my mother and optometrist. It's always 'you have good eyes it's a waste you hide them behind glasses'. My best friends Max, Tyson, and Rei use to tell me that all the time, but they stopped seeing how uncomfortable I was with the subject. The very thought of putting anything in my eyes besides eye drops gives me a serious case of goose bumps down my back.

Besides my glasses which has put me in that "nerd" category despite the three I hang out with who have no problem being recognized by sophomores, seniors, juniors, and freshmen, there's always my hair. Can you believe that even my hair makes me unimportant? It just goes to show you just how not special I am. Oh don't think I'm overreacting…it's just a known fact that even to my brown floppy roots I'm dull. I have a hair style in the shape of a mushroom. I swear…some sadistic hair dresser must have kidnapped me as a baby and preformed irreversible experiments with my hair, hence why I can't do anything with it now.

Well…this is my life. Unimportant, floppy brown hair that droops into my line of vision, glasses with lens the size of dinner plates, and I'm on the lines of being a dwarf. Yep, if I didn't know me, I would think of no reason to want to know who I was. Which is why I say if you don't want to know me, then that's fine. Wait...I'm already boring you with my ramblings, aren't I? Well, let's just assume that you want to listen to my problems, to why the words insanity and institutionalized are conspiring with each other over my mental state.

Are you ready for my big secret or problem I should say? Well here it goes, before you decide to find something better to do with your life. Okay, here we go.

My secret…

I'm in love with my teacher. Okay…maybe it's not love right now, but I am infatuated to the utmost, have been for two full years. Which one of my teachers you ask? Well, I'm sure you can figure out by my earlier statements.

Yep, infatuated with my English teacher, how sad is that? Well, how pathetic is it would be the correct term? Things would be easier if he was a girl…but no, he's not. Instead, just the most gorgeous guy on the face of this Earth. If there were to ever be disagreement on that subject, I would have gotten in such a heated argument that you might chuckle at the blushing dramatics of a sixteen year old gay sophomore crushing on his English teacher.

But you must understand he really is perfect in every aspect. So beautiful that the Greek gods would have claimed he stole their beauty from under their noses. Yes, that perfect in oh so many wonderful ways. He's tall, I'm guessing about six foot, because he's always looking down when he speaks to me…well…okay, I'm shorter than most…everyone has to look down to speak to me. Still though, he could easily pick me up with no problem, leaving my feet to dangle.

Reason number two why he's so great, not only is he tall, but built in a lean way. You can always see the muscles in his arms when he likes to wear short sleeved shirts. His dress is always casual, a nice shirt and khaki pants of black, beige, or dark blue. His shirts vary from button down, a few times short sleeves, not too often though, long sleeved polo shirts are common most days. He never wears suits, probably because they don't give him much freedom. I do thank the gods above he allows his trim figure to be suggested to under the light clothing. I could bet my allowance for the next year his stomach is as flat as a washing board.

Let's see…what more can be said about my perfect teacher? Ah yes, we can not forget the wily hair pulled back in a loose ponytail in the back. It's the most amazing mass in the world. The front of his hair is slate blue while the back accents with a perfect dark blue; wild bangs sweep his eyes, which are enthrallingly like red wine aged with wisdom and experience. Every time he looks at me, it's like I get drunk without knowing those crimson eyes draw me into an inebriated waltz.

Those sensual eyes placed in a face—body also included in this statement—which had to be craved out of marble by the painter and sculptor Michelangelo before his death, then stored away until the gods above thought of the perfect use for the masterpiece. Hence the creation of this figure before me, talking about the life of the poet John Keats: Kai Hiwatari, currently of the age twenty-four. Even his name rolls off the tongue like honey oriented candy imported from a secret place one could only dream up…much like the teacher this metaphor relates to.

Eight years my senior, and twice my teacher, once a year ago in my English 1 class, which was also his first year teaching here, and now for British Literature. No, it wasn't fate I asked him last year if he planned to teach the course, his response: a slow smile which could easily be a sexy smirk because the transition from one to the other could never possibly fail him if applied. He's smart, witty, sarcastic and cynical without it being overbearing, insightful, and just so damn sexy. Now do you see why arguing with me over his perfection would get us no where.

I've already wasted more minutes of your time than I should. Yell at me if you must, I would not blame you for my hopeless grandeur. So, you see my dilemma, why I sit here writing this letter I never plan to give him. Someone once said that by writing your feelings down, it helps you clear your mind. Whoever that person was…they had to have a shallow mind in thinking up that "clever" idea. To all who plan to try it, the damn thing doesn't work. It just makes me realize just how hopeless a love I have for my Adonis.

And yes, you may note upon the possessive usage of the word 'my' in the previous statement. No girlfriend, or boyfriend—if indeed he acquires a taste for men instead of the opposite gender—I know of, have seen, or heard of by the squeaks of conversations girls in my class carry on about him. Very informative the female population can be sometimes when not giving one a headache for it. Where was I in my ramblings…let's see, ah yes I remember, my letter of confessions.

Of course I shall trash it once finished with this constructive usage of vocabulary the British bestowed upon this Earth. It's quite useful to express things in so many ways, though many at this school come from Asian or European descent. You can probably guess by his name that my beautifully perfect teacher comes from Japan. There I go again in usage with such a possessive word. How I would be scolded upon proper use of the word had anyone the slightest inkling to where my thoughts meandered.

I digressed once again haven't I? Please pardon my habit I usually do not tend to throw myself from one tangent to the next under normal occasions. I'll try to stay on subject from now on, not to agitate your patience with me. So where was I in my musings? What to do with my letter once it's done correct? I would never expect myself to be brave enough to allow this letter out of my hands.

Call me a coward if you wish for my absence in bravery, but the concerns of heartbreak carry my mind farther in rationalization. Too many factors play out this game my heart will not give up. How am I suppose to know that his heart doesn't call for another, whether man or woman I have no clue. Such a foolish notion he would be gay scolds the mind until further truths of it can be found. If he so happens to be gay and single-hearted what short circuit in my reasoning has carried me to the conclusion he would accept my smallest token of affections?

Harsh you think, but I do not. In my beginning comments upon myself, I told how unimportant I am. I will not be so zealous as to say I will turn heads, or that I am dating material by standards because truth makes a better suit than egotism. I am humble in my responses, never have I been asked on a date, nor do I receive letters of confessions from man, woman, or child. I doubt any time within the life span of being in high school shall that happen either. So I do not mourn over my many imperfects, but accept what I have been given without hesitation.

I do not intend to say I have a chance with my exotic love when in truth I know that the distance between us might as well place us in a simile of being like the Earth to the moon: unobtainable by all standards, laws, and rules. Smart, yes I do admit this small vain. All my teachers say the same thing each and every day, though it does not inflate my head with cocky arrogance, yet neither am I self conscious.

Rather, I accept what is there, do not scramble to become someone else, and acknowledge that which I will be; something which infuriates Tyson to the ends of his long blue hair. Many talks have ended with light threats of "gaining a backbone and going for what I want".

Yes, he knows about my obsession to say the least over my English teacher or as Tyson puts it "the devil himself". Many days have been spent listening to Tyson argue over an assignment being too long or similar grievances, which is when wit always rolls in to assess the situation.

Tilting my head to the side, I find Tyson once more nodding off from the lesson. We have been friends since elementary school. I've always tagged along on his misadventures, thinking up ways to get us out of trouble. But you can not hate the guy if you knew him; he's always been easy to forgive, but quickly to forget the lessons learned from one thing or another. I suppose it's due to his abundant supply of hyper energy needing to be burned off by any means necessary.

My dear, dear friend, what would you say towards these random thoughts in my head, and unremitting words printed on my paper? I can assume in sincerity you would thoroughly chastise my humble habits like you always do, then if it weren't for the rest of the class, would march up and tell my deepest affections to my crush. Thankfully you have chosen to nod off while I continue my pursuit of freedom. Though I know that shall never become the case for a love which has incessantly dwelt for such a long time in the corner of my mind. I fear, regardless of everything, this shall never vacate my heart.


	2. Chapter 1

Rim: It seems that so far, I have a few people that like this story off the bat, and maybe one that's wondering what's the point of writing this piece. I know Kenny sounds a bit boring in this piece, but that's sort of the point. Taking a dull, average kid and transforming him over the course of this story. But for everyone that likes this story so far, and wants me to continue it, here we go, the next chapter. More than likely I'll be updating this like every week and a half to two weeks since I have up to chapter 8 wrote, just to span things out until I get chapters 9-17 wrote. And no, I have no idea how long this story will be, I guess as long as it takes to get Kenny through college and in a relationship with Kai. Now on with the story.

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Chapter 1

The male with dual hair stopped in front of his maple desk once he finished the selection in the teacher's edition textbook in his hands. With a short smile, he sat himself upon the desk. "All right then, whose going to give me an idea of the passage's significance?" As he expected, no one was eager to raise their hands and volunteer. Evidently students now and days weren't into reading books and studying literature and when explaining what was read to them came up, their little minds went blank. He blamed the parents for allowing them to sit in front of the TV watching trash like Jerry Springer.

When he was coming up, his grandfather had a strict control over what he did and he was lucky to get in thirty minutes of TV let alone watch something that didn't involve thinking about what was going on. His red eyes scanned his twenty-five students and sighed lightly, that was until his brow twitched with annoyance. Many of his English students either shifted their eyes away when he glanced their way, or had their eyes in the textbooks as if reading.

There was the occasional student with a horrified 'please-don't-pick-me' plea clear in their eyes. Needless to say the reason behind his twitching brow had nothing to do with his empty headed students' reluctance to form a single thought on the selection. No, he could over look that, blaming the parents later. The reason behind his annoyance now was due to the bluenette with his head on the top of one of the desk, a puddle of drool pooling out under his cheek. The boy had been previously in his English 1 class the year before which had been his first year teaching.

Getting up from the desk he sat on, the teacher strolled over to where the boy was sleeping, standing at his desk. The other kids in the classroom turned around to look, a few giggling at the scene, some making noises of disgust, probably because he was sleeping in a puddle of his own drool.

"Tyson Kinomiya!"

"Huh? What? Is it lunch time?" The bluenette's head popped up immediately, staring around with blurry eyes as a long string of drool hung down.

"For one, wipe your mouth," the teacher sighed.

"Huh? Oh…" the boy wiped his mouth then stared up at his teacher with confusion while the male smiled at him. "Is it lunch time already, Mr. Hiwatari?"

"No, Mr. Kinomiya, it is not lunch time, I'm afraid lunch time is over. The class would like to welcome you back from your vacation in the land of dreams though. Now that your brain is more refreshed, could you kindly tell the class your opinion on the passage?" Mr. Hiwatari said.

"My opinion on what passage?" Tyson blinked.

"Page four eighty-nine, John Keats' _Ode on Melancholy_," the brunette beside him said. The brunette was Tyson's best friend from elementary school, though everyone couldn't figure out why he chose to hang around someone like Tyson in the first place. Since of course whenever anyone saw Tyson, Kenny was always helping his friend with homework.

"Thanks Chief," Tyson grinned.

"Now Mr. Shinoda, I think we should let Mr. Kinomiya figure out what we were reading and discussing," Mr. Hiwatari smiled at the brunette.

"You know that I can't tell you anything about the passage because I was asleep. You're just picking on me because of it," Tyson whined.

"At least you admit your crime, Tyson. So I'm going to reward you with after school detention today. Be on time or it will be another detention for tomorrow. Do I make myself clear?" Mr. Hiwatari stated.

"Yes, Mr. Hiwatari," Tyson sighed.

"Now that we have that settled, I still need a volunteer to explain to me the significance of this passage," Mr. Hiwatari turned to look around the class room again, his kids were still in the zombie brained stage, encouraging yet another sigh from the twenty-four year old man. When he figured he would become an English teacher since he spent so much of his childhood reading all types of literature, he didn't think he would have that many problems finding students with the same enthusiasm he shared. After all…he was only eight years older than these kids.

"Mr. Hiwatari." The soft voice of one of his students caught the man's attention, watching a hand go up. Turning his attention to the brunette beside Tyson, he felt a familiar smile bend the edges of his mouth. He could always count on his top A student to save the day by answering.

"Yes Kenny," Mr. Hiwatari said.

"The title of the passage is _Ode on Melancholy_, if read wrong, the reader might think that it's about how sad he feels, but odes were never meant to be sad, since before the Romantic era in Britain, odes were always the highest form of poetry and used for the most important events. It's more so a praise to it as poetic inspiration. The last stanza of the poem gives indication he personified the emotion of melancholy as a woman of religion, when he mentions her shrine. And the writer feels that he is but another trophy on her wall to witness her power," Kenny stated.

"Very interesting," Mr. Hiwatari went back to his desk, sitting on the edge and smiled at his top A student. Just then the bell, signaling last period ended. "All right class, for next time I want you to read _Why did I laugh tonight? No voice will tell_, _Ode to Psyche_, and _Ode on a Grecian Urn_ and write me thoughts about what you think these three poems mean for Monday."

The kids in the class groaned as they gathered together their notebooks and textbooks before heading out the room. Kenny looked over at his friend who was sulking, slowly gathering up his things before sliding out his desk and walking over to his friend. The two walked out the room, but not before Mr. Hiwatari reminded Tyson yet again to be back in his room in fifteen minutes. Avoiding the other kids in the hallways that were happy it was finally Friday afternoon.

"You know, he sucks so much," Tyson groaned. Kenny turned his head towards the teen beside him who was sulking worst than ever. "I mean, it was just a nap, can he really blame me for eating lunch then coming to his boring class and wanting to fall asleep."

"Well, he has," Kenny remarked. "And if you find it so boring, why did you want to take it in the first place?"

"Well, when you said you were going to do it, I was like it can't be that bad you'll be answer all the questions anyway. You're like the only person in class that would know something about this stuff," Tyson said, placing his hands behind his head. "But of course with your dad and mom being big writers, you must have been born reading."

"That's not true, besides my parents write under pseudonyms and all their book signings are out of town. I never go with them, so it's not like anyone knows," Kenny said. Yes both his parents were in fact popular writers, his mother was a fantasy fiction writer and his dad wrote on everything from alien conspiracies to the supernatural. More than half of the books they wrote went into the bestsellers group immediately.

"Yeah, but from the time I've known you, you were always really smart when it came to things like Shakespeare and stuff," Tyson argued.

"Hey, Tyson, Kenny, wait up!" A wild haired blonde ran up to the two, heading down the hall. He was followed by a young man with black hair head back in a long white bind.

"Max, Rei, what's up dudes?" Tyson said.

"Hey, what are we going to do today? You know that new movie just came out in theaters that's suppose to be like uber scary, you guys want to check it out?" said the blonde. His name was Max Mizuhara, Kenny and Tyson had met him their ninth grade year, along with Rei. Of course the two first met and befriended Tyson before getting to know Kenny, which was probably how things always were. When Tyson and Max got together for anything, it always spelled trouble Kenny would rather stay out of.

"Tyson has detention with Mr. Hiwatari," Kenny said, reaching his locker. Putting in his combination, he opened his locker and grabbed his book bag before setting two books in there and get out another notebook.

"Again, what the heck did you do this time?" Rei said with a shake of his head. Rei Kon was the more leveled headed, having known Max since middle school. Then again, he allowed Max to drag him into trouble and didn't seem to mind it at all. All in all, Kenny was the most settled between them, many times being a silent voice of reason.

"I sort of fell asleep in his class again and he gave me detention for it," Tyson said.

"Well tough luck, I guess that leaves Rei, Kenny, and I to see it then," Max said with a shrug. "Eventually you'll learn that Mr. Hiwatari won't get on your case when you decide to be a good student."

"Oh kiss my ass," Tyson grumbled.

"You keep forgetting Max, I'm not a big fan for horror movies," Kenny replied to his friend. "I think I'll pass it up this time."

"Oh come on, it's not going to be that bad," Rei said.

"You two know that I hate horror movies. I think I'll go home and work on my homework," Kenny said. "My parents left this morning for a book signing thing in New York, so I don't expect them to be back until Monday."

"Your parents are always out, let's have a party," Tyson grinned, his eyes shining with excitement.

"And have my parents deciding not to leave me alone anymore if something goes wrong?" Kenny question while quirking up one of his brows that could barely be seen by the hair curtaining his eyes.

"Sometimes I wonder if you want to do anything exciting with your life, I mean your parents are always traveling around, yet you're like someone's grandmother," Max pouted. "I mean, when you go home, you're just going to pick up a book after you finish your homework and read."

"I like reading, can I help it? I can't always get you three out of trouble when I don't have to," Kenny smiled, brushing his hair from his eyes, but it fell back into place once again.

"You need to spice up your life, get a girlfriend or something," Max said. "I mean, even Emily is known around school and she's like the smartest girl in our grade next to you."

"I'm not that smart," Kenny remarked. "I may excel in English, but every other subject I'm mediocre at. And beside, Emily likes to get attention, I don't, there is quite a grand difference within our boundaries."

"All I'm saying is that you should do something, or you aren't going to be remembered when you leave this school," Max stated.

"I would rather stay out of the limelight," Kenny countered. "Being remembered by people who I don't know would be pointless."

"I give up!" Max groaned.

"You should know that Kenny isn't the type of person who cares what others think about him," Tyson laughed. "I've known him since kindergarten. Even back then he kept to himself a lot, and just shied away from massive attention. Especially when his parents were starting out big and everyone kept asking him how it felt to have bestselling writers for parents."

"Don't remind me how much of a headache that was," Kenny shook his head. "It still makes me uneasy to this day to have people find out about my parents and then annoy me about it."

"You're going to die an old maid," Max sighed. "Well, since you're going home and Tyson has detention, I guess that leaves me and Rei to see that new movie then. We'll check you guys later then."

"All right, but tomorrow morning, we're still going to the new carnival that just opened right?" Tyson said.

"Of course, I saved up money just for it," Max chimed. Taking Rei's ponytail in his hand, he dragged his friend down the hall towards where their lockers were. Tyson and Kenny watched until they were gone before Tyson turned to his best friend with a smile.

"I guess I should head back to the classroom and wait for Mr. Hiwatari to come back to make me do torture work for the next hour or so. I'll call you later when I get home so you can help me with the homework."

"All right, and next time you have the urge to sleep, pinch yourself, you're going to give you or our teacher gray hair before the school year's out," Kenny smiled.

"Then everyone will look at you funny when you're with him," Tyson said slyly, watching a bright splotch of crimson color his friend's cheeks. If there was one thing that Tyson knew he could get a reaction out of his friend about, it was there teacher. Tyson made a game of seeing just how red he could get the other before the other threatened to shut him up for good. "They'll ask you if he's your grandfather or uncle then."

"Tyson," Kenny flushed.

"I know, if you don't shut up, I will leave you to flunk the class and have your father get on your case," Tyson nodded with a smirk. "You threaten me the same way every time I mention Mr. Hiwatari. You know, we have just two more years before you're legal, and he's going to be like how old, twenty-six right?"

"I'm not going to go through this with you," Kenny announced. "I'm going to go home and unwind. Call me tonight if you have any problems with your homework, and don't you think about saying another word about our teacher tonight."

"Fine, I'm going. You just love to take the fun out of things," Tyson sighed.

Tyson went over to his locker a few rows down from where Kenny's was and unlocked it. The only books he would need over the weekend were his English book and Biology book, the rest of his notebooks for the class were at home. Closing his locker back up and waved his friend goodbye before heading back down the hall to their English class. For the moment it was empty except for the janitor that was picking up some loose papers from the floor and sweeping up.

Tyson walked over to a desk and sat down, but not before noticing a couple of sheets of paper on the top of his friend's desk. Getting up from where he sat, Tyson walked over and picking them up, thinking his friend might have been composing another short story in class. It was no surprise that writing ran through Kenny's blood since his parents were writers, but the brunette had no impulse to get anything he wrote published, in fact he just wrote for fun. The bluenette on more than one occasion found the passionate soul his friend didn't exhibit in daily life came out when he wrote, many of his stories were sensual and personal in feel and nature.

Of course, what Tyson held in his hands was not another short story his friend was writing. It was currently a three page letter unaddressed, but Tyson knew exactly from crisp words who the letter was meant for. Kenny would often write letters in this form to Mr. Hiwatari then later destroy them, saying that it let him get things out of his system. Underneath his introverted nature was the heart of a young man who feared rejection and shied away from the dangers of love. Anyone who was looking could see it pop up in Kenny's short stories all the time.

"Hm…I wonder what I should do with this," Tyson said to himself. As he sat there with the letter in his hand, an idea came to mind that didn't sound too bad, if everything went according to plan. If it didn't…his best friend was going to hate him for years to come.


	3. Chapter 2

Rim: Here's the next chapter for anyone who has been waiting for this...let's hope it doesn't get me killed by my friend. I swear to you Step-chan, I'm just working through my sister on this one. I'm innocent I swear, innocent! All right...now that I have that out the way...on with the chapter.

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Part 2

The young man with dual hair looked up from his examination of his English class's daily journal entries to find a guy with wild red hair grinning down at him. With a sigh, Kai Hiwatari turned his eyes back on papers in his hands, ignoring the red head over him. Since he began working at the school, the red head kept flirting with him to go out on a date. It wasn't that he wasn't into guys, quite the opposite in fact, even if his grandfather kept the rest of the family from finding out he was gay. The problem was the other's relentless insistence on the subject, and the twenty-five year old wasn't Kai's type.

"Is there something you need Mr. Parker?" Kai inquired, continuing to glance over the journals without looking up at the red head standing by the table. "Or is there just no one else you can bother at this moment?"

"Oh come on Kai, you're going to be mean to me now? And how long have we known each other now, a year and a half?" the red head inquired, sitting down at the table beside the other. Kai continued to look over his papers, until he felt a hand under the table roaming up his pants leg. Lifting his eyes to Michael Parker, one of the school's P.E. teachers, Kai moved his chair away from the table.

"If you would excuse me, I think your hand is meandering away from you," Kai stated with a frown, his auburn eyes narrowing at the P.E. teacher.

"You make my hand wander away from me, so how about tonight? Me and you go out and have dinner at a nice little restaurant, get to know eat other and maybe go back to my place for a while and—"

"And what Mr. Parker?" A woman with short brown hair walked into the teacher's lounge, her brown eyes situated completely on Michael.

"Counselor, it's good to see you today, looking as lovely as ever," Michael grinned, at the school counselor, twenty-nine year old Hilary Asakura. Since she was about Kai's age, she's been the school's counselor, helping troubled teens that come to her. Over the years, kids found that she could either be a pain to talk to, or down right crazy herself. Her fellow administers kept all their problems from her ears or else she took mark to correct all that were within her power.

"Are you harassing Mr. Hiwatari again, Mr. Parker?" The woman eyed the dual haired English teacher getting up from the table.

"No ma'am, just making conversation," Michael said.

"Mr. Hiwatari," Hilary said.

"I can handle myself Miss. Asakura, there's no need for you to get involved, now if you and Mr. Parker would excuse me I have to give a kid in one of my English classes detention." Kai walked out of the teacher's lounge towards his classroom on the other wing of the school. Taking a deep breath, he let his annoyance cool down, there was no reason to get wound up because of Hilary's over protectiveness of him, and Michael's tendency to throw flirting at him. If things did come to the point where Michael didn't eventually say no, he could handle himself without the older woman's need to swoop in and be a mother hen.

By now, there were only a handful of students roaming the hallways. A few were getting snacks from the vending machines before heading out to enjoy their weekend, while many others waited around for their friends to gather up their things. And here he was, still at school because of one kid who couldn't keep awake after lunch. So much for going home after his last class for once, he still needed to go grocery shopping because he doubt any of his housemates thought about it yet. Maybe he would call one of those idiots if they were home yet to get off their asses and get some food.

"And that's the problem with having sympathy for people you've known since grade school," Kai shook his head, rounding the corner to the next hall over. One or two kids from his other classes were putting up posters for an upcoming literature event some of the student council kids decided to do to raise money for art supplies and sport equipment.

"Mr. Hiwatari, hi!" a girl with short brownish-orange hair waved to him as she directed two boys to hang the poster higher.

"Hello, Emily. Helping out student council with their event?" Kai smiled, eyeing the poster.

"Yeah, I think it's great that the school will have money to get better tennis rackets for the tennis club," she smiled. Kai had to remember that she was the star player for the tennis club and they might actually enter a tournament because of her. Of course tennis wasn't a sport Kai would watch willingly, but he liked to keep tabs on all different types of sports his students were into. Emily was in his advance English 2 class, and near the top next under another one of his students, also in his British Literature class.

"How is tennis going for you, anyway Emily?" Kai inquired.

"Got a powerful back hand, you know we may go to a tournament this year," Emily grinned.

"I've heard," Kai nodded. "They say that you might be leading the club into the tournament also. Do you think you can handle that big a responsibility?"

"Of course," Emily chimed. "I've been playing tennis since I could walk I was born for a moment like this. So, are you leaving for the day Mr. Hiwatari?" She tilted her head to the side, staring at her teacher she didn't deny she had a crush on. Not only was he one of the youngest teachers at the school, he was the cutest also.

"I wish I was going home, but I fear that I have to give a young man detention before releasing him for the afternoon," Kai sighed, turning his eyes towards his classroom where he could see the boy looking down the hall waving at him. "I should get going he's waving at me to hurry up."

"Poor Mr. Hiwatari," Emily said sympathetically. "Just think the semester is only seven and a half more weeks. Then you can have summer vacation to yourself."

"That's a nice thought, I'll keep that in mind when I go to class on Monday," Kai said, as he continued down the hall to his classroom. Yes, seven and a half more weeks before the semester is up and he can relax until the next semester started in August. Maybe he wouldn't have to put up with the bluenette in his room in August, and his kids might actually have brains. Stepping into his classroom he was met by a grinning Tyson Kinomiya, unnatural to say the least because Kai doubted the boy wanted to have detention on a Friday afternoon.

"Mr. Hiwatari, so what am I going to be doing in detention today?" Tyson said, the smile on his face seeming to stretch wider.

"Mind I first ask you why you happen to be imitating the Cheshire cat?" Kai remarked.

"Oh, I had one of those things that people have every now and then," Tyson replied.

"One of those things that people have?" Kai repeated quirking a brow. "May I be kind enough to inquire what things that people have there are quite many Mr. Kinomiya."

"You know, one of those things that people have when they come across something," Tyson spoke. "It was that word you taught us in English class last year."

"An epiphany, Mr. Kinomiya?"

"Yeah, that's the word, I had one of those a while ago, that's what I'm smiling about," Tyson nodded rapidly.

"You had an epiphany about what?" Kai inquired rather interested that one of his students would have that sort of thought pop into their head randomly. Shutting the door to the classroom and heading towards his desk, Kai sat on top of it like he was prone during the school day.

"Well, I was sitting here and then it was like I was given a key from Heaven to use, but if it doesn't work out correctly, I'm going to be scorched by the fires of Hell for years," Tyson said. "It's like I wrote a piece of poetry while talking, isn't it Mr. Hiwatari?"

"Very interesting yes, I didn't think you could be so creative when you spend most of your time asleep in my class or goofing off," Kai responded.

"Well, I'm not really that creative, it's due to Kenny," Tyson said. "I've known him since we were in elementary school, so over the years I guess it rubs off sometimes. He's really creative, and he loves to write and read."

"Mr. Shinoda seems like the type, I don't doubt it one bit." Kai was wondering whether the boy was using his brief interest with the epiphany thought to carry the conversation away from the fact it was detention. Or was it cleverly disguised as part of what his epiphany revolved around? Since Kai really didn't feel like giving the kid detention on such a nice Friday afternoon anyway, he would let it go, but only this once.

"Not a lot of people here know that Kenny's parents are both popular bestselling writers. He tends to hate the attention, I remember one time when someone asked him how he felt having writers for parents, he looked up from the book he was reading and asked the kid how he felt about his parents. It confused the kid because he didn't expect that. Kenny went back to his book when the kid just stared at him. He's always been like that though, that's why we get along. We just let each other coexist together." Tyson looked down at the papers in his hand, then back up to his teacher.

"His parents are writers?" That would explain the young man's opinions on literature. Why he didn't hesitate to answer questions in discussions and his high test scores when analyzing works or identifying passages from works. His brain was a library of short stories, novels, and poetry from the time he must have been able to comprehend language.

"Yeah, Kenny writes too, but he says he doesn't want to be a writer like his parents. His stuff is really good too, I'm always telling him to get them publish, even if he doesn't want to be a writer, he should share his work with other people besides me," Tyson replied.

"Writing for fun is perfectly normal, writing is a very unstable career, you may write books your entire life and not one becomes a best seller, or you can have one best seller and the rest of your books fall into the shadow of your first masterpieces. If critics don't like the way you write, and you let writing be your entire life, you will never eat. I think he's looking at the reality of the situation," Kai stated. It amazed him that a boy of only sixteen as his top A student was didn't have starry hopes of becoming something he loved to do. Youthful optimism was what separated many from the reality of the hardships of adulthood.

"But he has a gift, his stories are passionate and contain bits of his soul, you use to tell us that writers find their ways to their souls through writing, Kenny is the same way. He may be quiet and more mature than most people I know on the outside, but his stories show what's really there on the inside. I think he could make it writing," Tyson argued. "I really think that if he listened to someone else other than me, he would realize it too."

"Which is where I come into the epiphany?" Kai voiced.

"Not really, I was just letting you know," Tyson grinned. "Besides, I'm sure your girlfriend doesn't want you out so late at night convincing your stubborn students to give things a try."

"I don't have a girlfriend, Mr. Kinomiya, so I have no worry of sleeping on the couch at nights," Kai smirked, having a feeling that his student was coming to the real part of his epiphany. He had a hunch his sexuality was about to be questioned, and if the boy found out whatever it was he was getting to, Kai was trapped. Maybe Tyson Kinomiya wasn't as lost as he perceived. "Is there a specific reason you're about to ask me if I have a boyfriend, because I don't either."

"How did you know I was going to ask you that?" Tyson blinked.

"I've gone through this routine plenty when I was your age," Kai chuckled.

"That was like a hundred years ago?" Tyson grinned.

"Watch it Tyson," Kai warned. "I can still give you detention."

"You know I was just kidding around, I know you aren't that old, the only people that old is vice principal Balcov whose been around since the beginning of time," Tyson remarked. To that, Kai had to laugh, seeing as how it was true that the vice principal looked quite aged for being only fifty-eight. "See, you agree with me that he looks like he was walking around with the first known cavemen."

"You should not speak dourly of your elders, you will one day be that old," Kai scolded lightly.

"But not that old or grumpy," Tyson countered. "So back to the conversation at hand, so you don't have a girlfriend or a boyfriend, are you just single because you want to be, or because you haven't found anyone your type?"

"Are you confessing something to me, Mr. Kinomiya?" Kai questioned.

"Believe me, I like chicks just fine. Not that I'm bashing on gay people, I'm not that type of person," Tyson shook his head. "Besides, I can't like a guy that gives me just above passing grades."

"So, what is the point of this, and how it connects to your epiphany?" Propping an elbow on his knee, he leaned forward, staring at his student with curious auburn eyes.

"Well, I can't tell you unless I know if you're gay or not, or at least bisexual," Tyson said boldly. Either he was going to be shot down and suspended for this, or he would find out his answer, regardless for which all his cards were being laid down on the table.

"That's a bold inquisition you placed on me, I fear that I can not answer it seeing as how I don't know what your epiphany has to do with my sexuality. Kids these days love to scream molestation on teachers in this era of education and I would rather not be part of that scandal, Mr. Kinomiya. So forgive me if I impede your knowledge of that," Kai announced.

"Okay, then…I understand," Tyson nodded. Standing up from the desk he was seated at, he walked up to his teacher with the letter in his hand and held them out to the dual haired man. Kai looked at them, then the boy before taking them. "It's not for my benefit to know, but if you are, then consider that would you? Since you aren't going to give me detention, I think I will take my leave, I might still be able to catch a movie my friends went to." Going back over to the desk, Tyson gathered up his things and smiled at his teacher.

"And this is?" Kai looked down, finding very familiar script cursive upon the faint blue lines on the first sheet of paper. He had a suspicion the other two sheets had the same handwriting inscribed upon the lines.

"Consider it my epiphany," Tyson said. "Have a nice weekend Mr. Hiwatari and I will see you on Monday." Before Kai could say a word, the boy was already out the door. Kai looked back down at the papers in his hand. Could the boy's epiphany…?

"And I never once noticed…" Kai muttered to himself as he sat on his desk reading what he eventually realized was indeed a confession from the last place he would ever expect. The epiphany…more like a jolt of lightning coursing from the tip of one's head to the soles of the feet and catching the individual unaware.


	4. Chapter 3

Rim: I'm already up to updating chapter 4 now, wow, at the rate I'm going, I think I might to slow down with these updates so I can work on chapters 8 and 9. Wouldn't be a good think if I got up to chapter 8 and it wasn't finished wrote out. Then again, I'm already threatened by my other friend whose read up to chapter 7 and is currently waiting for chapter 8...of course she's waiting on other things from this story that I have yet to get to yet, oh well...don't worry B.T. I'll get you chapter 8 soon...and I'll hurry up and get up to chapter 12 which is the you know what chapter I promised was suppose to be in chapter 8. Now that I have all that said, moving on with thanks to everyone who is currently enjoying this story and to all the nice comments I got for it.

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**Chapter3**

Kai trudged towards the two story four bedroom, two bathroom house with his key in his hand. The garage did not contain the two door black Chrysler that his best friends Tala Ivanov and Bryan Kuznetsov owned, which only meant that both were still out for the evening and would likely be back home close to dark. Heaving a light sigh, Kai walked up the porch steps towards the door.

Balancing the bag in his arm, Kai tried to put his key in the keyhole and open the door. After fumbling various times with keeping the top items in the bag from falling, the door was opened for him. Standing in the doorway was a boy of about fourteen with messy dark blue hair that was pulled back into a messy ponytail, which did nothing for his wayward bangs. His red eyes looked up at Kai with a welcoming smile.

"Hi Kai, my big brother and Bryan said they were going to stop off by the ABC store to get a few things for the weekend, and they would be right back," the boy smiled. The boy was Tala's step brother from his father's second marriage after Tala's mother left him for another man. Tala treated the boy no different than if they were related by blood. Every weekend the boy came to stay with Tala, Kai, and Bryan, it was no more than a two hour drive from Chapel Hill down to Durham.

"Hello Ian, did you just get here?" Kai inquired walking into the house once the boy stepped aside. Tilting his head back slightly as he headed for the kitchen, he watched the boy close the front door following behind him.

"Not too long ago, in fact my brother and Bryan were just leaving when my mother dropped me off here," Ian replied. "I thought you would have been home earlier, but when I looked in the fridge I figured you went to the store before coming home. I don't know how you put up with those two being too lazy to go while you work."

"Sometimes I don't know either," Kai chuckled, setting the bag on the kitchen table. Ian was opening the refrigerator door for Kai as he picked up the eggs from the top of the bag and handed them to Ian to put in the egg tray. "But then I remember that they make amends for it by paying the utility, cable, and phone bills. So they aren't so bad to live with."

"Well for one, Tala works for a phone company, so it's easy not to forget to pay the bill when the company he works for supplies the phone service, as for Bryan…well working as a manager of a hotel has nothing to do with it, so I guess he's the exception to the rule," Ian stated, receiving another chuckle out of Kai. Ian had a charm that made him like any other fourteen year old, but Kai supposed that hanging around people ten years older than him placed a keen wit into the boy's head which entertained Kai on several different occasions.

"You shouldn't speak so poorly of your dear brother or Bryan," Kai scolded teasingly. "Besides, I have to keep reminding myself to buy food or else we will starve, or resort to takeout every night."

"Well you're a teacher at a high school you get to have some bad days. After all, you work with high school kids, they're worse than middle school kids by far. More fights, more issues, and teachers have to work harder to get them to pay attention," Ian voiced.

"In some that's true, but not all high school kids are like that," Kai smiled. "Many actually try to learn in my classes, well except for my very troublesome student in my British literature class by the name of Tyson Kinomiya. I have no idea what I'm going to do with that boy." Kai placed the head of lettuce on the counter, thinking about the letter in his case in his Mercury. Throughout his time shopping, his mind wandered back and forth between what he read and his own standpoint on the subject.

Kenny could not have put his friend up to being messenger of that letter nothing gave indication of it in the letter. Especially the part when he mentioned the other letters he was unwilling to give would have a new number added to it. If what Kai believed was true, his eyes were never meant to gaze upon the words his student composed, and Tyson took it upon himself to delivery the letter unbeknownst to the brunette, or with much reluctance. If with reluctance, he would have changed that part, or adding in something more on the first page.

"Kai, what are you thinking about?" Ian tugged on Kai's sleeve, bringing his attention back to the younger boy.

"Sorry Ian, my mind was preoccupied, did you say something?" Kai shook his head clear of the situation for the moment. He would have time later to consider exactly what to do with the letter. Ian tilted his head to the side, a frown appearing between his brows.

"Are you thinking about something important, concerning that kid in your class?" Ian questioned. "Is he a troublemaker or something?"

"No, nothing like that," Kai replied. "In fact, he's not the problem." Maybe it was a practical joke the two were playing on him, or they could be trying to get him in trouble…no, that didn't seem like either one at all. He had troublemakers before and could easily spot signs of trouble brewing, which was leading him back to this being a real situation of one of his male students liking him. He was acutely aware that his female students' admiration for him crossed boundaries into affection, but they were too young and still rather immature for his taste, if he had been into girls.

"Then what's wrong, you don't usually look so reflective after work," Ian said, his eyes studying Kai. "Something from school is troubling you. People always say that if you have something troubling you, you should talk about it with someone. If you want, I will listen to you."

"Thank you for the offer Ian," Kai smiled, reaching over and ruffling the boy's hair. "But I believe I can work it out on my own. It was very unselfish of you to say that. I have a feeling that when you go to high school in the fall, you're going to do fine."

"Thanks Kai," Ian beamed. "Why don't you go unwind and I'll put up the rest of the food?"

"Your girlfriend is going to have to watch out if she goes to a different school in August than you, because you're going to be very popular. Then again, Eliza's going to have you on a short leash if you two do go to the same high school though," Kai teased.

"I don't plan to give her reason to put me on a short leash," Ian said matter-of-factly. "She's the reason that I live and breathe, and I'm not going to tell her otherwise. I thought I told you we're going to get married after college."

"I didn't forget, I'm just surprised that since you two started going out last year, your relationship is so mature," Kai said.

"That's all thanks to you, my brother, and Bryan. You taught me that there's no reason for me to rush anything, Tala's taught me to appreciate everything in my life…and Bryan's the prime example of what happens when you're promiscuous," Ian said with a wide grin. "He's dumped like every other week."

"Bryan would have your hide if he heard that remark," Kai shook his head.

"Well I know you won't tell him, so I have nothing to worry about, now go rest, I'll finish up here, Ian said.

"Thank you so much Ian," Kai said. The dual haired young man headed out the kitchen to head to his room. Later that afternoon Kai found himself in his room looking over the letter again, thinking about the situation. The more he analyzed the letter, the more he discovered that indeed his eyes were not meant for the words accumulated on the sheet. His eyes scanned the second page slowly, able to hear the soft voice speaking the words to himself as he wrote this piece notable enough to be an ode by each statement emblazoned into sight.

"On occasion, when I sit alone at night contemplating each epiphany I've collected throughout the days, I amuse myself with hope, for my wide imagination of life and optimism collides in a mixture of forlorn contradiction. As heavy as the heart beats, the mind pulses stronger, banishing my soul into a darkness only my revolving light seems to see, irony of anyone who believes to comprehend his ways." Kai nearly jumped five feet out his chair hearing the voice echoing the words he read. With an exhaled breath, Kai turned his head to the red head that was reading over his shoulder.

"Tala Ivanov, what the hell do you think you're doing scaring the shit out of me?" Kai declared with annoyance at being interrupted. The red head leaning over his shoulder straightened up and grinned down at him with blazing light blue eyes. In the fifteen years he's known both Bryan and Tala, Kai has never once uncovered the reasons behind his friendship to the two wily Russians. If it wasn't Tala's incomprehensible logic, it was Bryan's devil-may-care attitude which led Kai many times to wanting to kill them.

"Hey now, you can't be mad with me, I knocked, you didn't answer, so I came in," Tala shrugged.

"Without at least acknowledging you were behind me by a hello or what are you doing?" Kai asked.

"You looked busy, I didn't want to disturb you," Tala grinned.

"Do I have to point something out to you, you illogical brat, you have disturbed me," Kai pointed out with a smirk in the corners of his mouth. "You've always disturbed me with your logic, and Bryan has always led me to believe he was going to kill himself unintentionally."

"Oh, calm down mother hen," Tala rolled his eyes, flopping down on the edge of the bed to look at his best friend. "So, what were you reading anyway? Love letter from one of your female English students?"

"Why would you come up with that conclusion?" Kai asked amusingly.

"Well, kids these days don't write like that, and the only way I could think they would is if they were in your English classes. It sounds like something they wrote especially for you since they know how much you enjoy wording like that," Tala stated.

"Very observant of you Tala, I suppose that you oft use your brain after all," Kai joked. "But no, this letter does not come from one of my female students it comes from one of my male students."

"Damn…I would have never figured that out, the handwriting is too damn neat…well except for yours. So, what's the kid like? What's his name and how old is he?" Tala asked.

"His name is Kenny Shinoda, my top A British literature student. He's currently sixteen, but a quiet, serious student to be that age. Not the same youthful optimism I see in kids now and days. His friend was the one that brought this letter to my attention while I was giving the boy detention today." Kai smiled, thinking that Tyson Kinomiya was more insightful than he gave the kid credit for.

"So his friend was playing messenger for him, must be a cute one," Tala remarked.

"His friend was playing messenger on his own accord," Kai corrected. "Kenny isn't the type to use others for his personal gain even if it's a friend or no matter how insignificant a situation. He will definitely be quite charming when he gains a few more years."

"What does he look like? I want to see pictures," Tala chimed. With a roll of his eyes, Kai reached into his desk drawer and pulled out the yearbook from last year, flipping through until he found the ninth grade section of students. Continuing to flip the pages, Kai stopped when he finally found the yearbook picture of the boy. He looked exactly the same as he did last year. Turning around in his chair, Kai pointed to the picture of the brunette. Tala's eyes studied the cute face partially hidden behind a mass of brown bangs. "He's a cutie, what color are his eyes."

"Bluish-violet, I've seen him on occasions try to keep his hair out his eyes, but it falls back into his face. He's short for his age, but I'm sure you'll say his cuteness makes up for that, right Tala?" Kai grinned.

"How tall?" Tala eyed his friend, his eyes shining with a familiar light of a predator going on the prowl. "If you say what I think you're going to say, then I'm going to love you until you die."

"May I ask you what your obsession with—never mind, I might not want to know why you have a shouta complex in the first place, or the illusion of a possible shouta complex."

"Just hurry up and tell me how tall he is," Tala ordered.

"I would say about four foot eleven," Kai sighed.

"Oh dear god…he's the right height too," Tala moaned, falling back on the bed. "He's cute, smart, and petite do you know how rare it is to find one like that? Are you going for him? If not, just let me know when he graduates, I will gladly take him into adulthood the entire night as long as he remains that tall."

"Stay away from my students, you lecherous idiot," Kai said, shaking his head.

"Are you going for him?" Tala repeated. "And for your information, can I help I was born a pervert?"

"And yes you can help you were born a pervert by not acting like it," Kai shook his head.

"Maybe, but what about the kid, are you going to go after him?"

"No."

"And why?" Tala asked, propping himself up on his elbows to stare at his friend. "You're gay, you're not denying he's cute, and he likes you. What more is there to think about?"

"He's my student and I'm his teacher, not just that but I could lose my job if someone finds out that I'm with one of my students, let alone it's a male student. I don't care about the money since Grandfather put me back in the will, but I would like to keep my dignity and reputation," Kai countered. "On top of that, he's sixteen."

"Two years before he's legal," Tala reminded.

"You're impossible."

"I'm not the one that's being impossible, you're always telling me that you can never find anyone your type who doesn't want you just because you have a hot body. In all the time that I've known you Kai, you've had one relationship until you discovered that your boyfriend wasn't someone you would like to get to know on a deeper level. Remember, it lasted two weeks then you were back to one night stands. This one sounds right up your alley," Tala declared.

"And just how many times will I have to tell you that he's my student," Kai pointed out.

"Two years isn't much time just establish things right now and then later you go in and claim what you want," Tala grinned. "Hey, I told you if you don't want the boy, I'll gladly wait until he graduates to introduce myself. Especially if he remains high enough to—"

"Enough," Kai interrupted. "I don't want to hear about your sick fantasies about keeping all your short boyfriends in shorts or whatever people with shouta complexes fantasize about."

"You take all the fun out of life," Tala pouted.

"Just because I don't want to end up in jail, that doesn't mean that I take the fun out of anything. Besides, without me, you and Bryan would starve," Kai joked. "You would think that either one of you wouldn't rely on me to bring home groceries all the time. One day I might end up forgetting."

"Then we'll be eating takeout for the next few days," Tala smiled. "We know you hate eating fast food, so you never will forget to bring home groceries when we're low. That's why we don't bother doing it, unless you're sick. And how often does that happen?"

"Valid point made," Kai nodded.

"So back to the topic at hand," Tala continued.

"Didn't I just say no," Kai expressed with exasperation. "You're too damn hard headed to hear anything I say. Just give it up and end the conversation because it's not going to go anywhere."

"I will give in if you consider two things. First, the future is never certain because your answer in the future might contradict present opinions. Secondly, if the boy's friend was playing messenger on his own accord, or by his friend's request, you might find out in case the cutie is expecting an answer from you. It's true he may not know what his friend was up to, but do a little detective work so you don't break a young man's bittersweet heart more," Tala added in before getting up from the bed and walking towards the door. Kai's mouth nearly fell open hearing the words come from the red head's mouth.

"Has the blindfold from my light starved eyes been removed to unveil a nightingale I've longed to admire," Kai exclaimed.

"I don't know where that comes from, if I were to guess, Keats or Clare," Tala frowned.

"Wrong, I made it up," Kai corrected his friend again. "I shall take into account the wise words you speak. You may in fact carry truth in your statements."

"Well, at least you're thinking about it now, that's all anyone can hope for currently. Well, now that my work is done, I shall amuse myself with annoying Bryan, later Kai." Tala walked out of the room, closing the door behind him. Kai turned the year book to him, staring down at the picture of his student. Tilting his head to the side, he stared at the picture for a long time, his mind rotating around the letter, the young man, and the addition to his predicament.


	5. Chapter 4

Rim: I've finally gotten back to this one. Hee hee, it's just like that John Mayer song "Back To You"...okay, so it isn't. Oh well, I have been busying myself with a new story that my friend Heather and I are doing a joint original fantasy fiction story involving two brothers who are gypsies, a pirate crew, and a curse. In a way, think of Pirates of the Caribbean with yaoi and a sort of anime feel. For all things holy we have fruit that are bananas spliced with monkeys! How wickedly amusing is that! Okay, read now, you've all waited a while for this after all.

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Chapter 4

"His hands lowered from her waist, his eye burrowing deeper into the depths he no longer accredited with the person he was now. Indeed time changed many things, this was yet another his heart no longer clinched, no longer was he allowed to uphold the belief in optimism. Turning away, he let his mind forget the sounds of the past. That would be the final break from the surreal he spent his dreams exploring."

Once the words finished, silence settled in the semi dark room lit by only a single lamp behind the couch that the brunette sat on. Shifting the cordless phone from his left ear to his right, he awaited his best friend's response towards his last story. Kenny looked down into the large black book resting in his lap. The clear and neat cursive staring back at him from the pages he composed no more than an hour ago. Another short story no longer than seven pages long, this one was about a man who went into a coma for seven years after his fiancée attempted to destroy the life they had together. When he awoke seven years later, he realized that the woman he loved and the woman he was reunited with were not the same, making the ultimate decision about the flow of events while asleep.

"You know what Kenny," Tyson finally said after absorbing in the last few words.

"Don't say it, I know what you're going to say," Kenny commented with a roll of his eyes just as his friend groaned. "I'm not going to send it to a publisher."

"Why not, do you realize how great that story was?" Tyson declared. "There would be tons of people who would identify with that guy's situation and you're refusing them a chance to see your great creative mind at work."

"My so called 'great creative mind' is nothing special," Kenny remarked. "Anyone can learn to write like this, they just have to show an interest. I mean, I just choose to spend my active brain cells expressing myself with words and would rather spend my time reading and learning ways to build on my writing, it's just normal."

"Oh, you make it sound so simple," Tyson said sarcastically. "I'll be sure to remember that the next time I'm writing a paper and the teacher marks up each sheet with the words _are you really a stupid ass for not knowing how to write_."

"Sarcasm, it's rare for you to properly use it, what's the occasion?" Kenny smiled, hearing his friend growl. No matter how long those two knew each other there was never a fight that occurred between them. In fact, every argument people thought they had was playful banter. Kenny supposed that it was just their way of continuing to be friends without the stress of fighting.

"I'm always sarcastic to you when you tend to be so freaking nonchalant over everything. I mean, instead of quiet and reflective, people should know how sardonic and cynical your ass is. Of course, then you would never make any friends because you would run them all away with your behavior. You introverted, cynical whore. What am I going to do with your ass when we go to college?" Tyson inquired.

"Let me be the same introverted, cynical whore you've grown up with," Kenny suggested, turning the page of his black notebook to start a new story. This one would be another of his personal, sensual stories that were pieces of his soul, or that's what Tyson said when he once read the words the story contained. To Kenny it was just a means of clearing his head of clutter.

"Are you starting a new story already?" Tyson asked, hearing the turning of the page. "What's this one going to be about?"

"Another of your _"I'm sexually frustrated" _stories as you called them," Kenny replied.

"You are," Tyson exclaimed.

"Well thank you, but I have a good grip on my sexual urges or what not," Kenny said, while writing the words that flowed out of his head, through his pen and onto the paper.

"Don't tell me that late at night when you're home alone, you're experimenting on yourself," Tyson said.

"No, I am not. Unlike you Tyson, I can keep my hormones under control I have no need for masturbating," Kenny countered. "Or a cold shower works the same way."

"You got to be kidding me you've never once touched yourself, even by accident?" Tyson's voice held notes of both disbelief and suspicion. "Not even when you're showering? That is hard to believe. I mean, even I do that while I'm in the shower."

"Sorry Tyson, I don't touch myself," Kenny stated.

"You're odd I swear I don't know what I'm going to do with you when we go off to college. You're going to remain a nun your entire life," Tyson said. "Okay, I'm just going to leave that subject alone now. Okay, so have you heard from Max and Rei since their expedition to the movies, I didn't catch up with those idiots, so I caught another showing of the movie? It was a good movie."

"Horror movies aren't my forte," Kenny said, continuing with his new story.

"Now that I think about it, you never told me why? It can't be that you scare easily you use to watch them with me on Halloween. And you could tell great ghost stories, so what's with the 'horror movies are my forte' thing?" Tyson questioned.

"Hollywood hasn't made a decent movie since Psycho, well maybe I have to admit that Poltergeist, The Exorcist, and a few others were great for the genre, but they put out movies like Friday the 13th, Halloween, Child's Play, and Nightmare on Elm Street. All point more towards random killings of people and a lukewarm plot that has nothing to do with anything,"

"Oh come on, what do you mean they have random killings with lukewarm plots? In Friday the 13th, all the victims were horny teenagers who were killed off because Jason's mother wanted to avenge her son's death when he drowned at the hands of careless camp counselors. In Halloween, Michael Myers was trying to finish off his sister that got away. Child's Play dealt with a voodoo practitioner who got trapped in a doll's body and was going to sacrifice a boy to get his body. And Nightmare on Elm Street was classic, a supernatural boogeyman that killed teens in their sleep to get back at their parents for his death. How can you say that they had no plot with random killing?" Tyson argued.

"Because there was really no point in all the senseless violence," Kenny countered. "I mean, Poltergeist I can see happening to a point, The Exorcist I suppose could happen also, Psycho that can happen. I will even give you a point in saying Halloween I can see happening without the fact he never died. The other movies, there's no way in hell I could condone myself to stating there are possibilities I would fear such inexplicable happenings."

"For someone with a grand imagination, you suck," Tyson said after a moment of silence. "I mean, you can come up with ghost stories, but you can't go see a Jason flick, you have twisted issues."

"Just because I can come up with those stories, that doesn't mean that I have to enjoy them. In simpler terms, why waste money on movies that won't scare me," Kenny voiced. "Give me a story plot I can believe, without just random violence, and gratuitous nudity, then you can sell me a ticket to a horror movie. Otherwise you will be wasting your time."

"That's why I love you so much at least you give me a good reason for not going to see horror movies. When I asked Salema her response was babysitting, then I see her on a date with Carlos, of all people she went on a date with that idiot!" Tyson huffed. "Girls keep turning me down, I might end up gay, _then_ I'd probably get more dates."

"You're hopeless Tyson," Kenny chuckled. "Girls fear you, haven't you figured that out yet."

"I'm starting to see that now," Tyson sighed. "Hell, I seriously hope that things don't end up like this when I go to college, I'll have to cry on your shoulder. Then again, sympathy from you is like pulling teeth. So, how's the story coming along, any sex yet?"

"Plenty," Kenny said.

"Getting horny yet?"

"Don't be rude to ask that sort of question," Kenny scolded. "Besides, I don't get horny."

"Still ruining my fun, if I flirted with you and asked you to masturbate on the phone would you do it for me?" Tyson asked.

"Why?" Quirking a brow, Kenny wondered where the hell this change of conversation came from out of thin air. Tyson's mention of his sexual preferences was nothing new, it occurred on a weekly basis in fact; talk about Kenny's preferences weren't new either. And Kenny never once questioned his friend's proclamations of going gay if he didn't get a date before he got out of high school, but mention of sexual things dealing with the two of them never came up before. "Have you been trying to experiment with drugs, my friend?"

"No, I have not," Tyson said.

"Are you confessing something over to the phone to me then?" Kenny asked, quite curious to know the reason behind Tyson's sudden interest.

"No, I don't love you. We've known each other since we were small, but I have nothing on the lines of a confession ready for you," Tyson answered. "It is a question of curiosity dear Kenny to see if I am able to sway your affections in my direction."

"Gotten that desperate you have to try to make your gay friend fall in love with you?" Kenny smirked.

"Humor me?" Tyson begged.

"Begging? Never once did my mind convey such humbling from the great Tyson Kinomiya in this lifetime or the next," Kenny spoke. "Your question of curiosity, my dear Tyson has many outcomes. I could humor you saying that I would do such a thing only I would never be able to do something of the nature with you on the line. In person, I doubt my nerves would hold, or I could retain an erection. In your assistance, I would feel awkward."

"Meaning I can't get my gay best friend to want me either," Tyson moaned. "I appreciate your honesty, it didn't help me though."

"You'll find someone to love and someone to love you in return, you don't have to rush things," Kenny advised.

"So says the brain that's pining over our English teacher," Tyson said.

"I am not pining over Mr. Hiwatari," Kenny corrected.

"Well I don't know what you see it as, but all those torn up love letters suggest something to me," Tyson pointed out. "And before you say a word, I have to head out for a while my brother wants to go skating with some of his friends and has agreed to take me."

"I'll remain in the company of my story then," Kenny replied.

"All right you old maid, behave yourself and I will talk to you either later or tomorrow," Tyson said before hanging up the phone. Kenny slid the cordless phone off his ear, placing it back on the receiver behind the couch. Glancing down at what he had written so far, Kenny brushed his hair aside, only to have the brown mass fall back into place. A frown settled between his brows, pulling the mass back before grabbing a thick rubber band sitting on the coffee table in front of him and tying the mess back.

"Maybe I should just cut it," Kenny sighed to himself, tucking hair behind his ears. "At least then I won't walk into a wall. The only people who would probably notice a change in my hair anyway would be Tyson, Max, and Rei."

Turning his attention back to the story he was doing, he shrugged off the rest of his thoughts, focusing on his ideas. Time slipped, sucked away greedily, and left the young man unaware of the things around him until a knock sounded on his front door. Looking up from the now fifteen-page story, Kenny averted his eyes towards the clock resting on top of the television, the numbers reading 11:35. Who in their right mind could possibly be at his front door this time of night?

Sliding from off the couch, Kenny walked to the front door, pulling it open. "May I help you?" Looking up, Kenny found himself shook right on the spot, his eyes meeting a pair of fiery auburn of ambrosia wine. Any other words on the way halted immediately seeing his teacher in his doorway, a deep blue sleeveless shirt showing off powerful arms gained through routine fitness, coupled with black cargo pants.

"Shinoda," Kai said softly, breaking through the boy's unwavering stare at the sight of him. The boy did well to reclaim his composure, bowing slightly to cover the light flush Kai was sure dusted his cheeks.

"Mr. Hiwatari, I'm sorry, I didn't expect…you caught me by surprise, would you like to come in?" Kenny didn't know what God was trying to do to him, but a fair warning would have sufficed to prepare him.

"That would be much appreciated," Kai smiled, walking into the dimly lit house as the boy moved from his placement in the doorway. When Kai was inside the teen shut the door, looking up to the much taller man, it was probably the first time Kai noticed just how short his student was. The boy coming up no further to his lower chest, his stature could easily mistake him to be in middle school upon first glance. His hair for once was gathered into a ponytail, hair tucked neatly behind his ears to give his clear blue-violet eyes a chance to shimmer. Cute, Kai admitted, with time and a growth spurt cute would turn to handsome backed up with charming and sophisticated.

"May I inquest of your visit to my home, Mr. Hiwatari?" Kenny asked, this time the one breaking through thoughts. Why was his teacher at his home? And exactly what was on his mind? There was nothing Kenny could think of to explain his teacher's sudden home visit.

"Forgive my rudeness," Kai said.

"It's quite all right I must tell you if you came to speak with either of my parents, they won't be back until Monday morning. They went out of town for the weekend," Kenny stated.

"Actually, I came to speak with you, Kenny you don't mind I use your first name do you?" Kai inquired of the young man, watching the brunette shake his head no, bangs sweeping over his eyes before he tucked them back behind his ear.

"We're not in school, I see no reason to be so formal," Kenny said.

"All right, since we've settled that, you can just call me Kai. Mr. Hiwatari sounds too formal," Kai said, reaching into his back pocket to pull out the folded pieces of paper. Stretching them out towards the brunette, he watched a frown settled, blue-violet eyes lifting once more to meet auburn in an explanation. "Your papers, you left them at school this afternoon."

"My…papers…" Kenny repeated.

"The janitor picked them up and gave them to me, thinking it was an essay one of my students were doing for class. I recognized your handwriting, so I thought you wanted them back," Kai lied, having a feeling if he told the brunette his best friend gave him the sheets of paper laying out his confession of feelings, the bluenette might not make it to class Monday.

"Ah!" Kenny flushed immediately, realizing exactly what his teacher held in his hand. The thump of his heart accelerated, staring down at his letter of confession then at the ground. He could no longer lift his head to meet his teacher's gaze. No longer would he ever be able to speak with being reminded of this moment.

"Kenny, you don't have to be ashamed by what I read on the paper," Kai assured the boy, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry…" Kenny mumbled, continuing to stare down at the floor, refusing to take the papers and acknowledge this was happening. "I thought…"

"Look at me," Kai said softly, slipping his hand under the boy's chin, lifting his head up to see the shimmering blue-violet eyes sparkle with unshed tears. Kai could not help but want to scoop the young man into his arms, sheltering him from his own heart. Only Kai held back, instead wiping away the tears with his thumb. "Oh, how those eyes captured the strings of the heart, running a bow so lightly across to hear the sweetest sound for miles around my soul shall ever know in this life."

"You don't have to cheer me up, you know, it's okay if you feel disgusted by me or something, I'm not going to bother you again with this imprudent matter," Kenny said, averting his eyes. "I shall not be optimistic over persuading you in considering—"

"The words on the paper honored me," Kai interrupted, finding his student's eyes lift back to him, widening with surprise. "No one has ever thought of me on such a profound level. I can tell you that you are probably the only person I've known that has wanted me for more than my body. That honors me greatly, Kenny."

"But…I'm a guy, you don't find that…revolting in anyway," Kenny exclaimed.

"I've seen many revolting things in my life your feelings are the last thing I would ever use with that word. You have my respect," Kai smiled softly. "Now will you stop crying?"

"Pardon my…" Kai shook his head, ending the sentence before it begun. Attempting to hand the boy the papers again, this time Kenny stretched out his hand, taking the sheets.

"You have nothing to forgive. You are only human, love and conflict seem to go hand in hand all the time, don't trouble yourself with it. I shall keep your secret close to my heart. If you ever need someone to talk to, you can come to me," Kai replied.

"Thank you Kai," Kenny smiled. "But are you sure you mind?"

"Speaking with someone who has many interesting things to talk about that I can relate to and have a remarkable time with, I would never say no," Kai countered. "It's getting late I probably should be going home before one of my roommates conspires with the other to fabricate some harebrained fable of my whereabouts."

"Kai…" Kenny didn't know why, but he had a feeling that there was more to this story than his teacher would mention. "Did you really get my letter from a janitor? Something is telling me that a janitor wouldn't care so much to give you this. Besides, Tyson did have detention with you today, and he's the only other person that really knows about my letters. In fact, I'm positive now that he probably took it upon himself to stage this."

"I suppose there is nothing I can say that would stir you away from that conclusion, is there?" Kai smiled.

"Of course not, I know Tyson, and when he puts his mind to something, he does it. I guess I will let him live for this, he only thinks of my well being after all," Kenny sighed. "In any case, staying mad with him is like denying yourself air. He's hard to hate, but easy to forgive, that's what I've learned over the years of knowing him."

"He's a good friend, but try to keep him awake in class," Kai chuckled.

"If I could do that, I would have been awarded trophies by now," Kenny smiled.

"Then I am doomed to spend the last few weeks of school pulling my hair out," Kai shook his head. "Must I really be punished to such a fate? How the gods can be cruel."

"Kai," Kenny spoke, the smile on his face widening.

"Yes, Kenny?" Kai inquired.

"It's getting late," Kenny reminded.

"Oh yes, my roommates," Kai sighed. "I should be getting home. Have a good weekend Kenny I will see you at school on Monday."

"Good night Kai, you have a good weekend too." Kenny opened the door for his teacher, letting him exit the house. When the older man was gone, the brunette looked down at the folded letter in his hand, the smile on his face growing even wider. Well, okay, he couldn't kill or even scold Tyson for this his plan came to work out.


	6. Chapter 5

Rim: Testing is over, and now I can put more of an effort into producing more chapters for you all to read. Well, I have chapters ready, but not to read just yet, let's see can I get back on schedule with all my works. By May, I just might be able to run my train back on course. So, here we go, for all the anxious readers who have patiently awaited my return.

_**--oooooo--**_

Chapter 5

"All right class, I want you to read pages 378 to 384 tonight for homework for tomorrow's discussion on Samuel Taylor Coleridge, class's now dismissed," Mr. Hiwatari turned away from his students who began leaving the room. A few students groaned over having no time to read the pages while other's complained it was too much to read. Yes, parents were really to blame for letting the television be their babysitters, instead of a good book to learn something valuable, instead of the latest fashions on MTV. Luckily not all his students were so bad.

Eventually the sound of students filing out the room faded as the ringing of the final bell died down, leaving the room silent. Taking the eraser to the broad, he wiped away the notes on the Romantic poet, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, the class's next subject for the semester. In fact, he had a feeling he was going to remain on the writer for a while, seeing as how he was fond of discussing Coleridge's works and debating on their meanings. In college, he and his professor sat down regularly taking sides on the poet's good and bad points.

"Mr. Hiwatari." Kai nearly groaned, refusing to turn around and make eye contact with the red head he knew was standing by his desk.

"What is it Michael? Tell me it is something important, or I will have nothing more to say, ending this trivial conversation," Kai stated, continuing to clear his board.

"You're always harsh to me. Ever since you began working here, you've given me the cold shoulder and shot down every one of my offers to get to know each other," Michael replied, sitting on top of Kai's desk. "Am I not attractive enough for your taste?"

"You're very attractive to plenty of people, I'm sure," Kai responded.

"What about to you?" Michael asked. "I'm not interested in other people, I'm interested in you. Do you find me attractive or not?" Kai sighed, turning around finally to find blue eyes watching him. Auburn eyes scanned the features of the red head slowly. Michael was very attractive, it was true; people surely complimented him on that often. People were always telling Kai pretty much things on those lines, commenting about his eyes and how fascinating the color was, or if his hair was naturally dual shaded. Michael would definitely receive no fewer compliments than Kai would.

"You're very attractive Mr. Parker," Kai said finally once his evaluation was over. "I would say that you could obtain plenty of dates if you wished, and when you go out with your friends, you come home with no fewer than five phone numbers from people hoping you will call them."

"Then is that a yes you will go out with me to dinner?" Michael questioned.

"Though you are attractive, Mr. Parker, I have no interest in dating right now. The only thing I could offer you is conversation, _nothing more_." Kai put great emphasis on those two last words. So many times during college dates he went on always tried to lead back to his apartment, or the person's apartment. Of all his dates, few were worthy enough to take him to bed. The others attempted the task which failed. During his second year at college, he gained the reputation as being stuck up, earning him not a date for seven months.

"Only conversation?" Michael said.

"Just conversation, I would rather keep my romance out of the work place," Kai nodded. "You're a nice person Mr. Parker, but you aren't my type."

"Who's your type then, that little brunette with the glasses?" Michael questioned.

"What does my student have to do with this conversation?" Kai inquired.

"Well from what it looks like to me whenever I see you, you're talking to him during lunch breaks. Over the course of these past two weeks, I think it's a fair assumption he's the reason that you aren't dating. In fact, he seems to be the reason you're not interested in me also. You should know that he's a minor and likely to call molestation on you when you break up with him or something," Michael stated.

"How rude of you to imply I am not interested in you because of my student," Kai frowned.

"Well, isn't it true?" Michael voiced.

"No, it's not true," Kai replied.

"Can you look me in the eye and say that," Michael demanded.

"Of course," Kai said, lifting his eyes to meet Michael's head on. "For one, I think it is rude to blame my student for my lack of interest in you. Secondly, I am not involved with him in whatever sense you believe me to be. You want to know why I speak to him often, it's because I enjoy his company. His views of literature fascinate me."

"Is that the only reason you're talking to him?" Michael accused.

"No, he's rich and I'm trying to save my future by being friends with him," Kai said sarcastically. "Don't tell me that you're jealous of him, Mr. Parker. That would seem very childish of you to be jealous of my friends, whoever they may be. I think this conversation is now over Mr. Parker, would you excuse yourself from my classroom now."

"Kai…" Michael began until Kai held up his hand to silence the other.

"I said my peace in the matter," Kai remarked. Without a word, the dual haired teacher gathered together the rest of his things, exiting the room before Michael came after him. He didn't know what the hell was on Michael's mind, but the accusations the red head was insinuating were absurd. Of course he spent time speaking with Kenny during the past few weeks when he found time, but that was no crime. Kenny was an amazingly brilliant person when it came to subjects of literature, politics, and culture. It was also true the brunette was indeed attractive, but Kenny was still his student regardless of Kenny's feelings for him. "Of all the tactless —"

"Mr. Hiwatari." Kai's sentence was interrupted by the soft voice he was by now familiar with. Looking up from his thoughts, he found Kenny waiting at the end of the hallway with a quirked brow. The older man continued his walk, reaching the teen's side momentarily. "Should I interrogate reasons of your temporary lost of sanity, my dear teacher?"

"Your dear teacher," Kai chuckled. "Was just accused by his coworker that lack of interest in him was caused by a certain brunette at this school, do you believe those accusations, my dear student?"

"You certainly have gotten yourself into quite a fix there," Kenny smiled. "What are you going to do about it, Mr. Hiwatari?"

"Be rude the next time the subject comes from out of Mr. Parker's mouth again," Kai replied with a smile.

"Mr. Parker? You mean the gym teacher was trying to hit on you. Well, I can't say that I'm not too surprised. That does explain his unusual interest in watching me for the past week or so when I have gym. I had no idea that his reasons behind this were connected to you. Quite a fix indeed you've found yourself in teacher," Kenny chuckled.

"And you're wicked to laugh at the predicament in which your teacher has found himself in," Kai reprimanded lightly. "So tell me, what are you still doing around school, I would have thought Tyson occupied all of your weekday afternoons."

"Fortunately for me, Tyson has decided to spend his afternoon chasing after a young lady whose lack of interest in a relationship with him seems normal. Or at least normal to me, seeing as how he puts the fear of God into the opposite sex," Kenny declared with a smile. "If this insists on continuing, I may have to hear another conversation on how he will end up turning gay before college."

"It's interesting that as spontaneous and friendly as he is no girl has showed interest in him yet," Kai remarked.

"If there is one thing I've learned over the years, I doubt any girl will ever be insane enough to take an interest in Tyson. Of course I may be a little too pessimistic over the subject, and then he proves me wrong by meeting a wonderful girl with a great sense of humor and loves him dearly," Kenny smiled.

"I'm sure he will find someone," Kai agreed. Turning his eyes down to the shorter male beside him, Kai tilted his head to the side. "So, are you planning to just stay around here all day, or come home with me since you have nothing to do?"

"Are you offering me an invitation to come to your house?" Kenny inquired.

"You seem like you want an invitation to my house, but I don't know why you would want to hang around with that band of brainless dolts I share a house with," Kai shook his head.

"They can't be that bad," Kenny smiled.

"I wish I could back up that statement, but I'm afraid that you would be as senseless as I am if I were to allow you to come home with me and meet them." Kai wasn't about to add in the point that his red haired best friend would probably end up drooling over Kenny the minute he brought the younger to their house. Then Kai would have to explain to his student of his best friend's outlandish obsession towards boys who looked no more than twelve and came up to his belt buckle.

"So how about we go to my house then?" Kenny said. "Unless you have something important to do, I was going to ask you if wanted to come over to my house to discuss tomorrow's subject for class. You seem passionate about Coleridge, and I have a fond appreciation for his works myself. I'll gladly provide dinner also."

"And this is exactly why Mr. Parker comments that my eyes see no others but you," Kai teased.

"Is that a proclamation that you accept my invitation?" Kenny questioned.

"I don't see myself turning down a free meal and conversation over one of my favorite poets," Kai responded. "You have yourself a dinner partner." Kenny didn't know what he would have done if Kai hadn't said yes, or if he would have been uncomfortable over the situation. In the back of the brunette's mind, he was still hesitant to be so friendly towards the older man because he still had a huge infatuation that had yet to die down in his heart. Everything he did was carefully thought out to look like Kenny wasn't too interested or excited.

Even down to getting up the courage to ask Kai over to his house for dinner. In fact, he would have scratched the entire idea had Tyson not pushed him towards it. Kenny had wanted to wait for a day where his parents were home, that way it wouldn't seem suspicious or as if he planned some sort of romantic dinner just for the two of them. Regardless of Kai's continuing acceptance of how Kenny felt, the brunette had no idea if that was only because he was good company, or Kai felt sorry for his student. Maybe both, Kenny had no way of telling what was on Kai's mind.

"Kenny?" Kai frowned at the distant stare within the blue eyes which stared at the doorknob of his front door for more than two minutes since they arrived at the brunette's house.

"What?" Kenny broke his stare of the doorknob to lift his head up, meeting the wine colored eyes full of concern for him. A light flush heated the boy's cheeks, realizing he must have spaced out completely.

"Is everything all right?" Kai inquired, taking note of the embarrassed flush decorating his student's cheeks.

"Yes…I'm fine," Kenny forced a smile to his lips, before going back to the task of opening the door. Once both were inside the house, Kenny led the way into the living room. "The living room is this way, if you need to use the bathroom, there's one down the hall from the kitchen, or you can use the one upstairs two doors down from the left."

"You have a very beautiful home," Kai commented, looking at the well furnished living room decorated with one long cream colored sofa with an arm chair of the same color close to the window. A table rested behind the sofa, a Chinese style lamp and cordless phone rested on the table top. Resting within the entertainment center shelf on the wall in front of the sofa was a twenty-seven inch Panasonic TV. Books filled on side of the five foot shelf, while the other side featured CDS, cassettes, and vinyl records. The polished hardwood floor was decorated with a large Prussian rug covering the space between the chairs and the entertainment center.

"Thank you very much Kai," Kenny smiled. "You can make yourself comfortable while I start dinner."

"It would be rude of me to let you fix a meal for two by yourself," Kai replied, following the younger into the kitchen instead of remaining in the living. "Besides, what kind of gentleman would I be if I just sat around while you did all the work?"

"Oh, how kind of you sir to assist me," Kenny laughed, walking over to the refrigerator and pulling out a small package of chicken, baby carrots, an onion, and three potatoes. Kenny set the potatoes, baby carrots, and onion on the table, turning to Kai who was rolling up his sleeves. Kenny momentarily admired the well toned limbs, before turning towards the sink with the package of boneless and skinless chicken breasts. "Do you mind getting a pan from out of the bottom cabinet by the stove for me, and then cutting the oven on to three fifty, Kai?"

"Of course I don't mind." Kai walked over to the stove, turning the knob to heat the stove on then setting the knob at three hundred and fifty degrees for the brunette. Once that task was completed, Kai turned away from the stove, bending down at one of the bottom cabinets, Kai opened the cabinet door, looking inside for a pan big enough for the chicken Kenny was going to prepare. After a while, his eyes fall on a circular pan.

"Have you found a pan?" Kenny turned his attention away from washing off the chicken breasts, to find Kai holding up a pan. "That's a good one. There's a can of Pam in the cabinet above you, and there should be two cans of cream of mushroom in there also."

"I'm assuming that dinner will be just for the two of us," Kai replied, closing the cabinet door to get up and open the cabinets above him to find the Pam and the cans of cream of mushroom the brunette mentioned.

"My parents are out of town, they won't be back until the end of next week," Kenny stated as he walked over to Kai and received the pan, can of Pam, and cans of cream of mushroom. "Can you cut the onion for me I can't stand cutting those things?"

"There's a trick to it," Kai smiled, walking over to the table and picking up the onion. Carrying it to the sink, Kai picked out a knife from the holder on the counter.

"What type of trick?" Kenny tilted his head to the side, watching Kai cut on the water in the sink before sticking the onion under the flow of water and begin cutting the onion into rings. "I never thought of doing that. Where did you learn that from?"

"My grandmother, I use to sit in the kitchen while she cooked. She's the reason I learned how to cook in the first place," Kai answered, cutting off the water when he was finished slicing the onion for the meal.

"Your mother never taught you to cook?" Kenny said spreading the cream of mushroom over the chicken in pan sprayed down with the Pam.

"My mother was always busy working overseas with my father on business deals, so I end up being raised by my grandfather and grandmother. I suppose it was because of my grandfather I ended up wanting to be an English scholar and my grandmother's the reason I cook. What about you, Kenny?" Kai questioned, walking over to the teen and placing the onions in with the chicken and cream of mushroom.

"Well, I learned from my father, he's an excellent cook, my mother's cooking is sometimes alarming," Kenny chuckled, remembering when he was five and his mother tried fixing meatloaf and it ended up a meat brick. Nothing his father had been able to do could make that meal edible. "I think she was born with black thumbs."

"That's not a nice thing to say about your mother," Kai laughed. "Then again, I often had a few words for my mother growing up when she was around. We argued relentlessly over everything, now she hardly speaks to me at all when her and father comes to visit grandfather. I suppose it was on count that grandfather allowed me to be so liberated."

"I can definitely see you as a radical," Kenny teased. "I'm independent, but that's only due to the fact that my parents treat me as an adult and hoped I was wise enough to make the right choices when they're gone. I think we've always been that way."

"Because they are always away on business and you're always left to your own devices?" Kai finished the sentence. Kenny tilted his head to the side, looking up at his teacher.

"Is it that obvious?" Kenny questioned.

"The last time I came over they were gone for the weekend, now weeks later they are away on business. Children who typical have busy parents learn to be independent because of it," Kai voiced. "What do your parents do?"

"They're both writers. My father writes fiction and my mother is a fantasy author of books ranging from the age groups of fifteen and older. My father typically writes for all age groups. Not a lot of people at school know, but I'm sure since you're well versed in literature, you've probably read one of my father's novels."

"Let me guess, he writes under the pseudonym Richard Boswell?" Kai remarked, watching the shock enter the boy's eyes. "From what I'm taking a guess at, your father sat you down with many of his manuscripts and asked your opinion of them before having them published?"

"How did you know that?" Kenny queried. "You're the first person that's ever hit it directly on the head their first time."

"You have elements of your father's writing style I'm able to pick it up easily when I'm grading your essays. But if I were to take a stab in another direction, you integrated your mother's style when you write too."

"Very impressive Mr. Hiwatari, you've figured me out," Kenny bowed respectfully to the older. "No one has ever analyzed me down to the tee before. It's true that I picked up bits and pieces of both my mother and father." Kenny turned away from Kai, getting the baby carrots and potatoes from the table before heading over to the sink to peel and wash the vegetables. Kai stood by the sink, his eyes studying the now silent boy.

"Tyson believes your work is good enough to be as famous as your parents." Kai took the opportunity to bring up the subject since the conversation currently rested on those lines.

"Tyson has always considered my work grand enough to be published," Kenny proclaimed. "Of course Tyson thinks I'm a genius and can make no mistakes."

"I would have to agree with him towards your ingenious mind," Kai nodded.

"Are you trying to tease me, Mr. Hiwatari?" Kenny quirked a brow to the older man, a smile playing in the corners of his mouth.

"I would never mock that which is truth. I feared your generation's lack of innovation for life and uneducable stupors interrupted only by the teachings of Jerry Springer and MTV. I had begun losing faith until God sent me you and hope returned to my soul," Kai declared.

"I shall never fall out of love with you teacher if you continue caressing my ears with words sweeter than the taste of any ripened melon in mid summer," Kenny sighed. "Every utterance spurs my soul with fire which can not be quenched."

"I am honored with your words, but do impart my curious mind with this simple answer. Is it consternation that critics will assume you're replicating your parents' styles rather than using your own style restraining that passion of a writer within you," Kai probed.

Kenny lowered his eyes, breaking the gaze between him and Kai to the potato being peeled. It was ironic the one person he knew nothing about seemed to figure out everything about him in no time. Tyson has known Kenny since kindergarten, yet the bluenette failed to pick up his reason behind never trying to get himself published, taking Kenny's act of disinterest at face value. "You keep hammering the nail into place, funny how no one ever…"

"Kenny," Kai interrupted softly, raising his hand to cup the brunette's face in his palm. Pushing up the chin, the silky mass fell away, revealing the unshed tears threatening to break. "The foundation from which you've started may indeed come from them, but the bricks you're laying down will not crumble from weak mortar. The structure left after the work is finished shall be unique to the passion in your soul."

"Do you really believe so?"

"I told you, I would never mock the truth," Kai repeated.

"Thank you for your kindness," Kenny smiled.

"I would never forgive myself in allowing you to cry."

"There you go again," Kenny shook his head as Kai released his hold on Kenny's face. Though the brunette would have enjoyed the warmth to remain, he shall not rush headlong into romance without knowing just how Kai truly felt for him.

There were indications of possible interest, but hesitation intertwined with the emotion. During their dinner—a very heated debate over Samuel Taylor Coleridge it was—Kenny distinctively caught wine colored eyes lingering longer than expected. As if Kai was drinking in his image to be savored, even after dinner and the washing of dishes, when goodbyes were spoken, there was a split second of thought Kenny would feel the pressure of Kai's lips against his before a smile and thanks were given.

The ringing of the cordless phone at the end of Kenny's bed jarred him from thoughts. Picking up the shrilling object, he cut it on and placed it to his ear. "Hello Shinoda residence, this is Kenny speaking."

"So, how did it go?" Tyson's voice chimed in immediately. "Did he accept the offer? Did he come over? Did you talk to him? Did you have dinner? Did he kiss you afterwards and profess his love for you?"

"Everything was fine, yes, yes, yes, yes, and no. Does that answer each one of your questions," Kenny quizzed.

"So yes to everything but a kiss and confessions, so what did you talk about? Got any good blackmailing material for me to use when he's planning to give me detention again?" Tyson asked.

"There is nothing I could tell you that would help you, unless it's about the discussion in class we will have tomorrow," Kenny grinned hearing the groan escape his friend's lips. "Forgot all about reading, haven't you?"

"Shut up," Tyson muttered. "It's going on ten and I still have homework to do. I'll talk to you later about your little dinner, later dude."

"I will see you tomorrow then Tyson." Kenny hung up the phone, peering down at the black leather bound book in front of him. The page was entitled every given moment, under the neatly written title was a small dedication he wondered if the dedicatee would ever come to set eyes on. Maybe if he gained the courage, he would see if Kai still believed so deeply in his ability to make it in the literary world. By then, hopefully they would have established whatever relationship was laid out for the future.


	7. Chapter 6

Rimnerel: I guess I've been neglecting everyone with updates. I've been trying to write chapter 9 and 10 of this story, while trying to figure out where I'm taking this story. I think I've finally figured out what I want to do with this one, as well as my other stories. Let's not mention that I've had a lot of workload as of late, that when I come home, I don't feel like working on any fics...that and I've been a bit lazy, but forget that, I've given you all something to read now. Enjoy and hopefully I won't take that long to post the next chapter.

_**------------oooooo-----------**_

**Chapter6**

"Hey, Kenny, I got to wondering, it's been about two weeks since you've had dinner with Mr. Hiwatari, right? I want to know, what do you have planned next? What now?" Tyson inquired as he turned the corner of the circle he and Kenny were jogging around. Sweat trickled down into his eyes, off his sweaty brow as he flung droplets from his drooping bangs. The two boys were in the middle of gym class running a nearly two mile course, or as Tyson sometimes put it "as long as it took for them to go into cardiac arrest".

"What do you mean what now?" Kenny said between breaths of air.

"Well…are you going out on a real date sooner or later? Don't you want more than just a friendship out of him," Tyson said.

"Well, I can't afford to rush anything. He thinks of me as friend right now, so I will just bid my time and see what happens over the course of time," Kenny panted.

"Seriously…I need to stop, I'm going to burst," Tyson moaned.

"You and me both," Kenny nodded exhaustedly, rounding another corner of the track field that their gym teacher, Mr. Parker would bring them out on each day for their warm up jogs. That said teacher was watching the fifteen students in his class carefully, making sure that no one stopped or walk when they were supposed to be running. "It's like we're running more than we should."

"We are," Tyson huffed. "We've already done twenty something laps. He's in one of his moods today, again. Guess it's that time of the month once more." Kenny would have chuckled towards his best friend's comment, but he needed every little bit of breath being squeezed from his lungs.

"I want to hear less talking, and see more running," the red headed gym coach shouted at the two as they were coming around towards where the bleachers were.

"Sorry sir, but we're not talking, we're gulping in air to run more," Tyson shouted back with a wide grin on his face. "It just looked like talking."

"Kinomiya, Shinoda, come here, the rest of you head to the showers," Mr. Parker said loudly. Many of the students groaned with relief, glad that the torture session was finally over and dragged themselves towards the school. When all the students were gone, the gym coach pointed for the two to sit, which neither complained, their legs feeling like bowls of Jell-O. The man's blue eyes shifted between the two exhausted boys staring up at him. "What did you two think you were doing?"

"Running?" Tyson said.

"Don't be smart asses," Mr. Parker warned.

"I didn't say a word," Kenny protested.

"Besides, he's the smart ass, I'm just a follower," Tyson commented. Neither boy expected their teacher to turn almost the exact same red as his hair. Cold blue eyes flashed over each boy. "Um…Mr. Parker…that's not a healthy color to be turning..."

"Both of you ten more laps around the track and then report to my office once you've taken a shower," the man barked.

"What did we do?" Kenny demanded, getting up from the ground. "Or rather correction, what did I do to have to run with him? And besides, we weren't the only ones talking on the field. Why are we being punished?"

"Did I ask you what you thought, Mr. Shinoda?" Mr. Parker said. "Just because you're a top A student that does not mean you're entitled to getting your way with me. I'm not like all the other teachers in this school."

"Understood, but what justification are you going on to hand out punishment when half of the class should have been convicted in the same manner?" Kenny stated. "If I didn't know any better, there's a bias present which allows you to focus upon only myself and Tyson, isn't there, Mr. Parker? That's why you're being so authoritarian with us."

"Kenny, most times you know that I don't mind you speaking up and all…but…" Tyson started, watching the color of their teacher's face darken with anger. "He's really pissed off and I can't be a witness to murder if his blood pressure keeps skyrocketing towards a heart attack or stroke."

"Well, I'm not the one that's raising his blood pressure," Kenny replied, crossing his arms over his chest and continuing to calmly stare at the red head glaring down at him with fury coloring his blue eyes near that of a navy and black-blue.

"You're questioning my authority in this situation, Shinoda," Mr. Parker stated.

"I'm questioning your authority because you have decided to abuse the power you have been given. By questioning the authority that has been placed in your hands over your students that you seem to think are mindless enough to avoid your anger by staying silent, I find myself an answer to what it is about me which irks you so much. Perhaps before you glare at me with rage like you're currently doing, you can sit down with me and we can have a civil conversation over these issues that linger in the air. That's what adults do, right?" Kenny replied.

"You've done it now," Tyson groaned.

"Both of you to the shower, then to my office both of you," Mr. Parker snapped.

"Way to go Kenny," Tyson muttered, getting up off the ground of the track field to brush off his sweat soaked shorts. Pushing his friend towards the school, Tyson only shook his head, knowing that nothing good was going to come out of this. He only hoped that by the time they finished taking their showers, their coach will have calmed down enough to reason Kenny's remarks as curiosity instead of insult. Then again, when Kenny got in moods like this, which were hardly ever, it was never simple to get him out this funk.

"Is it my fault that he's being such an asshole about this?" Kenny said, allowing his friend to push him inside the school when they reached the doors. "It's not right to try to make us run ten extra laps while more than half the class were doing the same thing as us, not to mention you were the one that made the comment, so why am I getting in trouble for it?"

"Because you don't know when to keep your mouth shut, genius," Tyson remarked. "He would have let us go with ten more laps, now we're going to get detention and likely miss the lunch period for it. You know, I need to eat or I'm going to die."

"You're impossible," Kenny said.

"No, my dear friend, you are impossible," Tyson sighed as they entered the boys' locker room which was a few lockers down from the side entrance of the building they just passed through. The sound of showers could be heard running, the sounds of talking muffled under the hissing of the showers turned on full blast. "Now let's take a shower before he decides to send us to detention smelling like—"

"Someone's sweaty ass?" Kenny helped his friend out.

"Exactly," Tyson agreed. The two teens went to their gym lockers, taking off their locks once the combination was disengaged. Pulling out towels, the two teens went ahead and stripped, tossing their sweaty gym clothes in the back of their lockers and grabbing their bathing material before going to the showers where a bunch of boys were standing around talking, a few having already showered. Two of those boys turned to stare at the newcomers with curious stares.

"Well, look who finally decides to join us," said a boy with dark hair pulled back into a ponytail, his dark eyes focused on Tyson who scowled. "Hey, what's that look for?"

"Do you really think I want to talk to you right now, Carlos?" Tyson said, going to one of the empty shower stalls, and turning on the water. The dark haired teen followed the bluenette, leaning against the wall of the stall Tyson was occupying. The scowl on Tyson's face set more, ignoring the teen at his stall. If there was one person in that entire school that Tyson could not get along with for any reasons whatsoever, Carlos Macchio had to be that one kid whose nerves grated Tyson's patience to zero.

It wasn't bad enough that Carlos had the nerve to strut around school as if he was god's gift to every woman that passed his sight, but he had more than once stolen the attention of girls that he knew Tyson liked. They had once tried to be friends, until Tyson told Carlos a secret about a certain girl, only to have Carlos go back and tell the girl what was said. Then that said girl came back to Tyson, slapping him before saying never to come near her again. That was the last day Tyson allowed Carlos to hang out with him.

"Oh come on Tyson, we're friends aren't we?" Carlos said.

"No, we aren't," Tyson retorted. "Friends don't let friends get smacked by girls they like because one of those friends has too big a mouth to know when to shut the fuck up about things."

"Hey, sorry that it leaked out, I didn't know," Carlos shrugged.

"It leaked my ass, someone told me that they were standing right there when you told her yourself," Tyson said evenly. "Your apologies mean nothing when you don't really mean them. It might have worked on other people, but I'm not that dumb as you obviously think."

"Oh come on Tyson that was like last year, I've changed" Carlos persuaded. "I mean, it's not like I'm going to tell anyone what Coach Parker said to you and Kenny."

"I'm sure you have changed, but I'd rather not take that chance," Tyson stated.

"Fine, I'll ask Kenny then," Carlos said, turning away from Tyson to walk over to the stall Kenny was at, but finding a guy with short purple hair already over at the stall trying to pry information out of the brunette. Carlos smiled, or rather smirked, knowing that if anyone could find out anything, it was Stewart Algrant, Carlos's best friend since they were in junior high together. "Find out anything Stewart?"

The purple haired teen with the mole under his left eye shook his head. "Being as stubborn as his friend, but from the looks of it, that has to mean that they got in trouble. I mean, did you see the way Coach Parker sort of turned red out there."

"Sort of, he could have lit up the track field with his stare," Carlos joked. "I can see Tyson getting in trouble, but Kenny, what did you do to get on the coach's bad side? Now that I think about it, as of late, he's been getting all pissy for no reason." Kenny didn't say anything, lathering up his sponge before soaping himself.

"Kenny's not going to say a word and neither am I," Tyson grinned stepping under the spray of the shower to rinse off the soap. "If there's anyone who doesn't like people being in their business more than me that would be Kenny. You aren't going to get anything out of him, so you might as well give it up."

"If you would excuse me," Kenny said, breaking his silence after he was finished showering. The brunette then picked up his towel from off the stall door while wrapping it around his nude body once turning off the shower. Kenny stepped out of the stall, walking back to the lockers to dry off and change into dry clothes. Right now he didn't have time to deal with Carlos or his annoying tag along, there were more important things that needed to be done.

"Hey Kenny, wait up," Tyson said, grabbing his towel, and heading after his friend. "Hey, I hope you haven't let those two get to you, they talk a lot yeah, but you can easily ignore them."

"It's not them," Kenny said in a hushed tone. "I got to thinking about it. About why Mr. Parker is being so biased."

"You think you know? What's up?" Tyson said, toweling himself off while heading back to his locker. Glancing back towards the shower, he didn't see Carlos or Stewart trying to eavesdrop in on the conversation. Feeling only so safe speaking out loud about the discussion, Tyson grabbed his clean clothes, seating himself on the locker bench beside his best friend.

"Mr. Hiwatari," Kenny said. "He mentioned Mr. Parker's attraction towards him, and likely a disinterest with our gym coach has been believed to be cause by a certain brunette we both know. I think it doesn't have anything to do with talk, he's just looking for a reason to terrorize me, but I'm not going to let him."

"So you mean that Coach Parker is jealous of you?" Tyson blinked.

"That's what I think. It has to be the only reason why he's being such an asshole," Kenny replied.

"Dude…that's just like, really sad if Coach Parker is really jealous of you. Besides there's nothing going on between you and Mr. Hiwatari, even if you're like in love with him and all. What's even sadder about this is he's older than you and acting like he's in middle school."

"Yes, I guess it is sad," Kenny nodded. "I guess we should go ahead and go to Mr. Parker's office before he comes stomping in here and dragging us out, making a huge scene."

"I do agree," Tyson said with a smile.

"I gave you innocence, I gave you hope. Gave health, and genius, and an ample scope. Return you me guilt, lethargy, despair?" Kai finished the rest of the sentence from Samuel Taylor Coleridge's poem _The Suicide's Argument_ to get up from where he sat on the surface of his table to walk over to the door and open it. Kai looked down at the teen standing in the hallway under his arm was his English book and notepad. Raising a brow, Kai stepped to the side to allow his student's admission into the classroom. "And may I question why you're thirty minutes late to my class, Mr. Kinomiya, lunch ended a fair time ago."

"Sorry Mr. Hiwatari, you can blame Coach Parker for sending me to detention hall for the past hour and a half," Tyson said, walking over to his seat and sitting down in the chair. "He was in a raging mood today and I think a few words were said that shouldn't have been heard."

"You should learn to keep your mouth shut then, Mr. Kinomiya, or you could avoid such incidents as the one that occurred today. We're on page three seventy-eight," Kai said, going to sit back at his seat on the desk top. His crimson eyes flickered over the empty desk next to Tyson's. No one seemed to notice, except for Tyson, and figured his teacher wasn't about to ask in front of the class unless Tyson mentioned it.

"Well Mr. Hiwatari, I'm not the one who you should be telling that information to," Tyson said. "I only made Coach Parker angry it was my absent friend who pissed him the hell off."

"Language in my class Mr. Kinomiya," Kai frowned.

"Excuse my language sir, but under the circumstances, I would have to comment that pissed off is the only word that fits Mr. Parker's mood at the present time," Tyson commented, seeing the light in his teacher's eyes change from light to a darker tone, understanding exactly what was being said, before the previous shade of color returned to his eyes.

"Regardless of how appropriate the word is, refrain from using it in my classroom Mr. Kinomiya. Now turn to the page number and follow along in your book," Kai instructed, lowering his gaze back to the book in his left hand.

"Yes sir," Tyson nodded.

_**------ooo-------**_

"Kenny, I can't believe what we were told," Kenny's father said, looking down at the young man sitting at the kitchen table refusing to make eye contact with him. Kenny's mother stood in the doorway, a pen in her hand, but her eyes remained glued to the boy in the chair. Her son…who was too mature to be suspended from school for being disrespectful to a teacher, or so she and her husband thought until they received a call from the school saying their son was suspended for the next two weeks for his disrespect of a school official, and whether or not they could come pick him up from school.

At first, both thought it was some sort of mistake; Kenny never had problems getting along in school with anyone and knew how to avoid such confrontations. There was no way their son would do something as reckless, or immature as what the school was claiming. When they went, hoping to get a better explanation for the call to the house, they found Kenny waiting in the Vice Principal's office with the teacher Kenny had received the suspension from. Sitting down with the gym coach, they gave their most heart felt apologies, before escorting Kenny to the car and heading back home, the whole family in silence, until now once they were behind closed doors.

"Do you have anything to say for yourself? We should have made you apologized to that teacher for such discourteous behavior. What were you thinking? We taught you better than that," Kenny's father said disbelievingly.

"I wouldn't have done it," Kenny said quietly.

"What…?" Kenny's mother stared at her child. "What did you just say to your father?"

"I said I wouldn't have done it," Kenny repeated, lifting his eyes to the man standing in front of him, a twin pair of his blue-violet eyes meeting his. "There was no way you could have compelled me to speak words of apology to a man who had me suspended for bias reasons."

"Biased?" Kenny's father stated.

"Yes biased, he singled me and Tyson out of nearly twenty-five students who were talking on the track field while running nearly thirty laps. The only reason he wanted to give me detention was that I refused to be submissive to his authoritarian orders," Kenny declared. "I only inquired of him why he was singling us out, and he was tempered due to my questions."

"Were you suppose to be running instead of talking to Tyson?" his mother question, her arms crossed over one another as her stance shifted weight to lean against the kitchen entrance arch.

"He mentioned no rules we could not talk while running," Kenny replied.

"You shouldn't have been talking in the first place," Kenny's father commented. "If you were doing as you were told you would have never gotten into trouble, young man. And from what we were told, it was not biased when he decided to suspend you for being disrespectful. Sometimes we forget you're still just a child and can not see that what adults do are for the best to teach you right from wrong."

"That's not the case at all," Kenny voiced. "He doesn't like me. He just wasn't showing it while everyone was there."

"And why doesn't he like you?" Kenny's father lifted an eyebrow with a quizzical gaze. "If you give me enough reason with evidence, then I shall believe you and will take this case back to the school and have it sorted out." Kenny would have opened his mouth to explain, but under the circumstance for which he was suspended from school, he didn't think that it would be so easy to clarify this giant mess it already was, without causing more damage than good.

Because he didn't think his parents would understand the terms that he had already given up on dating a member of the opposite sex, getting married, and having children—though how supportive they were for him to do whatever he liked or wanted to achieve in life—he kept his mouth shut. The last thing he wanted on top of suspension was to hear his father and mother's disappointment, or better yet resentment of his sexual preferences.

The only people who really knew about his little secret was of course Tyson who figured it out by seventh grade that his best friend had a crush on Tyson's older brother Hiro, for a period of time. And because Kenny had eventually broke down confessing his homosexuality to Tyson at a sleepover due to a game of truth and dare. Besides Tyson, Rei seemed to know, but kept quiet over the issue until Kenny was ready to speak up about it, thankfully enough Max was still oblivious towards it. Kenny might not have heard the end of it if the blonde discovered. And of course Mr. Hiwatari knew, much thanks to Tyson's intervention. Other than that, no one else knew the truth and believed the brunette only to be shy.

"I'm still waiting on an answer Kenneth," his father said, tapping his foot against the linoleum floor. "Or is it proper to assume there isn't one?"

"There's one," Kenny assured. "I just can't tell you."

"Then that means there's no explanation to clarify your reasoning," his father said. "You've really disappointed us Kenny we thought you would have been more sensible about something like this by now."

"I am sensible," Kenny argued. "I tried to be reasonable with the man, but he was the one that went off the handle."

"Don't speak to your father in that tone," his mother said, a frown settling between her brows. "What has gotten into you?"

"There's nothing wrong with me," Kenny said, standing up from his chair. "I have my reasons for questioning him, but I can't tell you. Just trust me, please."

"How can we trust you, if you aren't giving us something to go on to make a bond of trust work between the three of us. You've never kept secrets from us before, so why now?" his mother stated. "If you are honest with us, we won't hesitate to listen to your side of things and have this straighten out immediately. You know that's how we've always been."

"I know mother…" Kenny sighed. "But it's different now. I'm older, and I have more things going on than when I was a child. My life has just recently become more difficult to explain or even sit down with you and talk about."

"And there's nothing we can do to persuade you to change your mind and consider placing your trust in us again?" his father spoke. Kenny only shook his head, dropping his father's gaze to look at the kitchen floor. "Then I suppose we will have no choice to ground you until further notice."

"Yes father…" Kenny said quietly, walking out the kitchen. Not meeting his mother's eyes when he left the room, he headed up the stairs, listening to his parents talk over his behavior and whether they were really losing him to whatever he was going through. Heading down the hall to his room once making it up the stairs, Kenny had no problem concocting in his mind that their conversation would soon lead to drug and alcohol usage while they were away, or if the wrong people were beginning to influence Kenny into something he knew better of. He didn't want his parents to think they needed to keep twenty-four hour watch on his activities while they were around. Nor invest in a babysitter while they were away, but what could he really do? There was no way he could just come out and say he was gay.

As complex as things were now, telling the two most important people in his life that trusted and treated him like an adult, who expected him to get a good job, find someone to love, and start a family—he couldn't dash some dreams they were likely having about his future. He was an only child, he had priorities to fulfill. Opening the door to his room, Kenny shuffled inside, shutting and locking the door before shuffling towards the bed and falling face first onto it. Turning his face towards the wall, Kenny tried to squeeze his eyes shut, stopping the burning tears which still managed to leak from behind his eyelids.

_**---------ooo----------**_

Kai walked into Michael's office, briskly making his way towards the desk, making a seat of the edge of the oak table. Looking down at the red head who stared up at him with a curious stare, Kai placed a hand on the desk, leaning forward to level out his line of vision with Michael's. "Is there something you want to tell me, Kai?" Michael smiled, his eyes roaming lazily over Kai's features before his gaze locked with the crimson eyes.

"I want to inquire why you had my student suspended from school today," Kai replied quietly, keeping his voice neutral of all emotion. "I found out from Mr. Kinomiya who you sent to detention that his friend was suspended on account of you."

The smile on Michael's face dropped immediately, replaced by a scowl at mention of the boy who had dared come between him and Kai. "Yes, I suspended him, and I had no problem doing it either. Your student as you called him was disrespectful and problematic. He would have continued doing so if I had not taken action."

"Disrespectful and problematic…?" Kai quirked a brow at the description Michael just gave him of the brunette. "That's definitely a new one on me. By chance, did you say something to cause that disrespectful and problematic behavior in Kenny?"

"Are you trying to say that I did something to provoke in?" Michael stated.

"Indeed I am," Kai nodded. "He doesn't _act_ problematic or disrespectful. I'm assuming something might have been said or done to trigger it."

"I did nothing of the sort," Michael protested.

"Are you sure?" Kai said.

"How can you trust that kid so much?" Michael argued, getting up from his chair. "He's not as composed as you think he is. He has a smart mouth while he's just trying to get on your sweet side. I'm telling you, Kai, you should be careful about him. He's nothing but trouble waiting to happen."

"Or so you think so," Kai voiced, standing up from his seat on the desk. "I just want you to know that I've already talked with both the Mr. Dickenson and Mr. Balcov over the issue and they have dropped the suspension from the school records, so Kenny will be coming back to school tomorrow."

"What?"

"I just came by to let you know that, and to find out the real reason why you had him suspended, which I think I have found, and to let you know about the decision that was made. I should be going now Mr. Parker, have a nice evening." Before Michael had a chance to say a word, Kai was already to the door, walking out and closing the door behind him. Waiting in the hallway were two men. One was a short stocky man wearing a pair of glasses on his nose. The other man was taller, even more so than Kai, with combed back dark purple hair. He looked much younger than the shorter man he was standing beside. Kai nodded towards the two men, making his way over to them. "Mr. Dickenson, Mr. Balcov, I hope that gives you enough incentive to credit what I have said to you beforehand."

The taller man with purple hair, who was the Vice Principal, gave the words some consideration, studying Kai while thinking. Finally, after a long pause, he spoke up. "His intentions fall upon the lines you gave as an example, but I do have a question for you, Mr. Hiwatari."

"Why am I so interested in seeing the boy reinstated?" Kai said, a smile curling his lips upwards in seeing him catch the vice principal off guard with his directness. "That young man, I have grown to know him well, and I think that it is unfair to allow Mr. Parker's bias of who I talk with to go unjustified. Mr. Parker thinks I am involved with my student in a romantic sense."

"And are you?" the Vice Principal interrogated.

"I know my job, Mr. Balcov," Kai stated seriously. "I would never think to do something like that. The only feelings I have for that young man is respect and admiration for the knowledge he is fond of. We have many great conversations over Shakespeare and politics. It's quite rare these days with the way kids are."

"It truly is," Mr. Dickenson smiled in agreement. "I think I understand your reasoning behind this, Kai. You don't want to be bored for the next two weeks without someone to stimulate your brain with interest. Am I right?"

"Mr. Dickenson," Mr. Balcov started until the Principal waved off the rest of the sentence with his hand.

"It's perfectly fine, Boris. I believe that Kai's intentions are good in this case," Mr. Dickenson smiled. "There's no need for you to be so suspicious."

"If you say so, sir," Mr. Balcov remarked, not quite believing that was the only reason Kai had gone into so much trouble in having his student reinstated. But since there was no evidence to prove otherwise, he would allow it.

"I appreciate you both listening to the case and coming to the right decision," Kai said. "I suppose when I get home, I will have to call his parents and explain the situation to them. I can imagine they are quite upset with the boy and this will come as a relief to them. I will see you and Mr. Balcov in the morning, Mr. Dickenson." Kai left the two men's company, heading out the building to the faculty parking lot to his car. Pulling out his car keys, Kai unlocked the car and climbed into his car, before pulling out and heading in the direction of Kenny's house. It would probably be better if he spoke to Kenny's parents personally and explained what was going on. That and he wanted to check up on the boy.

In a matter of ten minutes, Kai was pulling up to the curb in front of Kenny's house. Cutting off the car engine and pulling the key from the ignition, Kai stepped out of the car, strolling up to the house and ringing the doorbell. Waiting a few minutes, the door was opened by a man maybe two or three inches shorter than Kai with black hair, a pair of blue-violet eyes looked up at him with curiosity. "May I help you?"

"You must be Kenny's father," Kai said. "It's very nice to meet you, Mr. Shinoda. I'm Kenny's English teacher, Mr. Hiwatari."

"Oh, come in," Kenny's father said, ushering the young man into the house. "Honey, Kenny's English teacher, Mr. Hiwatari, has stopped by." A woman in her late forties with the same brown which made up Kenny's hair walked out from the kitchen. Brown eyes studied him with before a smile crossed her lips.

"I'm Kenny's mother, it's a pleasure to meet you," the woman said.

"Thank you very much," Kai said politely. "I'm sorry that I have to make this a brief visit, I just stopped by to talk to you about today."

"Oh, don't tell me that he's offended you too?" Kenny's mother said. "His bad habits are starting to persist. I would like to give you my deepest apologies if he has done something irreparable. We will have a talk to him when he wakes up from his nap."

"No, no that's not what I came by to speak with you about," Kai shook his head. "I just wanted to tell you that everything has been straightened out. There was a talk between Kenny's teachers and the Vice Principal and Principal, and it was decided that the teacher who suspended your son had a bias against him, and there was really no reason that your son needed such a drastic punishment. So he is allowed to come back to school tomorrow."

"Really?" Kenny's mother sighed relieved that Kenny wasn't turning out to be a delinquent. "That's such a relief to know. Thank you so much for coming to tell us that. We feared that he was getting into trouble and was heading down a wrongful path."

"I can assure you that he's in no way a problem. He's quite a brilliant and diligent student. I enjoy having him in my class," Kai smiled. "You have nothing to worry about at all."

"Thank you so much Mr. Hiwatari," Kenny's mother bowed slightly to the young man. "You know, it would be a pleasure to have you over for dinner one day. I'm not much of a cook, but I'm an excellent hostess."

"I think I will take you up on that offer one day," Kai said, reaching into his back pocket to pull out a small white card. Stretching out his hand towards the woman, he watched as she took it then looked down at it. "That has my home phone number and my cell phone number. Could you tell your son to get in contact with me tonight so I can go over with him today's lesson?"

"Of course," the woman nodded. "So what are you teaching them currently?"

"We're taking time out to analyze one of my favorite poet's during the Romantic period, Samuel Taylor Coleridge," Kai smiled, seeing the light in Kenny's father's eyes brighten at mention of the poet's name.

"I think I could get along with you very well," Kenny's father laughed. "Now you will have to accept my wife's offer to come over for dinner."

"I promise that I will take you up on the offer soon, it's been quite a while since I've had anyone cook for me, instead of me cooking for my housemates. But I should be getting home now. I still have many papers to grade from a test my World Literature class took yesterday," Kai replied.

"Oh, of course, and as soon as Kenny gets up, we will make sure he calls you," Kenny's father said, escorting Kai to the front door. "Now don't forget about our offer for dinner."

"I promise I won't," Kai assured. "Thank you for your time, and I will let Kenny know when you should be expecting me for dinner." Walking back down to his car, Kai got in on the driver's side of the car, placing the key back into the ignition. Cranking the car up, he took it out of park and shifted the car into drive, his destination was his home.


	8. Chapter 7

Rim: Eh...don't ask me what happened with updating this thing. I've been all over the place with everything...I suppose that this is about the longest wait anyone has had for this story. Sorry everyone, I'll try to juggle it a bit more evenly out. I'm working on the rest of chapter 10 to start 11, so hopefully the wait won't take this long, enjoy.

_**-oooooo-**_

_Chapter 7_

Kai entered his living room, finding his two room mates lounging on the couch watching the news. Both raised their eyes from the TV, staring at Kai whilst he settled into a chair adjacent to the couch they were seated on. Kai leaned back in the chair, resting his head on the back of the piece of furniture, then closed his eyes. It really had been one of those days he didn't need, and to make matters slightly unpleasant, he had a feeling that the Vice Principal was having misgivings towards his reasons for having Kenny reinstated from his suspension.

"So, where have you been?" Tala said, once a commercial came on.

"School," Kai replied.

"You look like you were just dumped to me," Bryan commented.

"Thanks for your opinion, though I must correct you on that. I was not dumped. I would have to be involved in a relationship in order to be dumped. Currently, I am still single," Kai said, lifting his head from the chair, turning his eyes on the pale eyes studying him.

"What about the little hottie?" Tala grinned in a wolfish manner. "Still denying him candidacy as a possible love interest? And don't tell me that he's not. You've already had dinner with him, that's date one."

"That was on equal grounds, he asked me to dinner to discuss literature," Kai reminded.

"But it's still dinner," Tala pointed out. "If you were worried about him taking it the wrong way, because you weren't interested in him, then you would have told him no. How long have we known you Kai?"

"Too long," Kai said, putting emphasize on the words.

"Anyway," Tala said, rolling his eyes. "The point I'm trying to make obviously, is that Bryan and I have known you for so long, that we know all your mannerisms. You are more likely to be interested in a person's brains instead of looks. Not that I'm saying that little dumpling isn't the most adorable thing under five foot."

"How many times have I told you not to refer my student into terms that sound as appalling as that?" Kai replied.

"Fine, fine," Tala waved off. "Your student is adorable and he has smarts, that's right up your alley. If I'm correct in thinking, you don't mind his company, and if interest isn't presiding your opinion of him yet, it's definitely working its ass off at the moment."

"Kai so desperate for a date he's ogling high school boys?" Bryan teased, dodging the pillow that was hurled at his forehead. "I'm just asking you don't have to get defensive."

"With you and Tala, there's no other way to be," Kai said.

"Bryan, you know what kind of guys I like, don't you?" Tala questioned, having his friend turn to stare at him with a mischievous grin. "And don't say what I think you're about to say."

"What?" Bryan grinned wider. "I wasn't going to say anything."

"Yes you were," Tala argued.

"What do you think is on the tip of my tongue?" Bryan asked.

"I know you're going to say I'm like R. Kelly, only I prefer boys instead of little girls. Or that I was born with the mind of a priest. I know you Kuznetsov, I know you too well not to know what you think about my opinions of happiness," Tala said crossly.

"What? It's you, priests, and R. Kelly's fetish, I said nothing about it," Bryan grinned, raising his hands in defense. "Just don't get caught hiding in the bushes of some elementary school filming little boys in shorts."

"You know...if you weren't a dear friend, I would lay harm to you," Tala stated.

"How did I get stuck with you two for housemates?" Kai said rhetorically. "I am amazed you have yet to drive off my last bit of sanity."

"We're working on it," Bryan said in response. "So, what's this piece of information about you and a high school boy? The last time I checked, you preferred them slightly older than seventeen."

"Cute," Kai retorted lightly. "I don't have an attraction towards my student. True I do appreciate his company, only under the terms of friendship. He is a minor and the thought has never crossed my mind to engage in an illegal relationship."

"Two years of waiting isn't long," Tala interrupted. "Besides the teachers date students secretly all the time in Japan."

"And we are not in my homeland, have you forgotten?" Kai said.

"So, this sixteen year old boy has a crush on Kai, he's everything Kai could ever hope for in a life partner, but Kai's being stubborn about how he really feels for this kid?" Bryan questioned. "Typical of you, Kai. I think I have to go with Tala on this one. Two years isn't a long time to wait."

"How many times have I told you--?" Kai started.

"Yes, yes, you aren't a child molester," Tala said, waving off the subject. "You sound like a broken recorder player."

"Or some recluse," Bryan added in.

"Yes, that too," Tala nodded in agreement. "He's going to die an old maid."

"Good one," Bryan laughed.

"I give up, I don't know why I try," Kai sighed, getting up from the couch.

"Where are you going, Kai?" Bryan questioned.

"Upstairs to get away from both of you morons," Kai declared. "Now if you would excuse me, I would like to climb into something more comfortable."

Kenny slowly opened his eyes, staring at the pillow which his head rested on. His room was soundless; all noise below no louder than a continuous murmur. The light from the window was now a dusty crimson swirled with indigo, reminding the young man of those wine colored eyes which had captured his heart. A sigh glided pass his parted lips, whilst his mind recapped the events of earlier that day from his debacle with Couch Parker, to further disaster towards the confrontation between his parents over the said problem.

What was he going to do? Then again, the real question was what could he do? There was no way-regardless of how open to most things his parents were-that he felt compelled to tell them that he preferred the attractions for same sex relationships. Of course, eventually it was likely this hidden knowledge would spring up when least anyone expected it, causing more damage than good. However, the same results might occur given it was known now.

"Too many choices, not enough incentive to follow a path leading towards their acceptance of me being gay," Kenny said to himself in a hushed tone. "Right now, they probably are disgusted by options playing in their heads of me being on drugs, in a gang, or any number of teen related mishaps plaguing society."

His best shot was to remain upstairs, concealed from their sights for the next five years. That plan was less likely to receive him conviction. Remaining pressed to his bed, Kenny shifted his eyes to the window, enjoying the serenity cloaking him, until the slight rumbling of his stomach shattered any chance he were to remain out of his parents sight for the remaining day. The real dilemma now began. Sure he could skip dinner, avoiding his parents, or he could face his parents like an adult and try to work something out between them. He'd have to face them sometime, it was unrealistic in thinking they would go away and this never happened, his suspension was proof enough of it already.

"Kenny," his mother voice rose from the other side of the door as she knocked. "Are you awake, sweetheart?"

Sweetheart?

Was he awake?

Surely those were not the words of a disappointed woman who felt betrayed her only child was withholding information on his life from her. Who had argued with a teacher and got himself suspended due to it? Unless he had slept for ten years, to reawaken when the betrayal had passed, he did not believe heartfelt words would be distributed.

"I'm up mother," Kenny spoke, lifting his head away from the pillow, a slight headache throbbed in his temple as a result of crying himself to sleep. Sliding from the bed, Kenny strolled over to the door, unlocking it. Pulling it open, he stared at his mother with curious eyes, scanning for betrayal and deception within her eyes. "Is there something else you wish to speak to me over?"

"Would you mind coming downstairs with me, there is something your father and I have to say to you?" his mother said, taking both his hands in hers. There it was more scorn and convictions were to come as he was led downstairs to where his father sat in the living room. When Kenny stood in front of his father, he feared the worse. Perhaps they knew now why he argued with Couch Parker, and now they were going to scold him for the indecency of such immoral behavior.

Staring from his father to his mother, then back again, Kenny's mind fretted over what could possibly be on his parents' minds. Perspiration dotted the back of his neck, trickling down from his nape in nervous anxiety as he awaited his sentencing. "Mother said you wanted to have another discussion with me, father?"

"In fact, we did," Kenny's father nodded.

"Kenny, your father and I would like to apologize for what we said earlier to you," his mother said. "We had no idea that you were telling the truth about your teacher. Please accept our apologies for not trusting your judgment."

"What?" Kenny blinked, not believe the words which his mother spoke.

"Your English teacher came over a few hours ago explaining that situation with your other teacher, and he said that everything was now straightened out, so you would be able to go back to school tomorrow," his mother smiled.

"Mr. Hiwatari came over?" Kenny said, though Kai was the only person likely to know about his suspension so soon.

"He's such a young looking teacher and he seems like he enjoys his work so much," his mother chimed with a smile. "I invited him over to dinner one night, and he said he would accept the offer. He wanted you to call him when you woke up so he can discuss the work he assigned in class." His mother pulled out the small white card, holding it out to her son. Kenny walked forward, taking the card from his mother.

"Thank you mother...father," Kenny smiled. "I'll go call Mr. Hiwatari immediately and thank him for his effort in freeing me of these convictions." Bowing respectfully to them both, Kenny turned, heading back upstairs after grabbing the cordless phone. Hurriedly walking to his room, the young man walked inside, closing the door behind him. Glancing down at the card with Kai's home number on it, Kenny cut on the phone dialing the number. Placing it to his ear, the brunette listened to the phone ringing.

After two rings, someone with a slightly higher voice than Kai's picked up the phone. "Tala speaking, how may I help you?"

One of his roommates, Kenny thought to himself as he opened his mouth. "May I speak to Kai, if he's home."

"May I inquire who's calling?" asked the person on the other line.

"His English student, Kenny Shinoda. I was instructed to call him about today's assignment the minute I was free," Kenny replied. The person on the other end of the phone, Kenny heard whispers followed by another person in the background yelling Kai's name.

"Kai should be down in just a minute," the male named Tala said. "So, you're the young man that I've heard so much about. It's very nice to finally speak to you, Kai's always telling me how great a student you are."

"Thank you very much," Kenny answered.

"You should come visit, it would be interesting to meet you." The man was about ready to go on, when the phone was taken from him. Kenny listened to the argument between Kai and his roommate before there was a whine, and muttered as the other voice went away.

"Hello, Kenny?" Kai's voice came through the other end of the phone momentarily after. "I hope my roommate wasn't harassing you too much."

"No, he's was fine," Kenny ensured. "I didn't know you spoke of me to your roommates?"

"Yes...sometimes I wish I didn't," Kai voiced loud enough that he caught a grumble from behind him. "So, your parents gave you the message?"

"Yes, I want to thank you for everything you've done, Kai."

"Don't worry about it," Kai said. "You were wrongly punished for Mr. Parker's own jealous motives. It's been settled with the principal and the vice principal, however I have reasons to believe Vice Principal Balcov's thoughts lean towards identical assumptions as Mr. Parker's. So, much care will need to be taken over how we conduct our time together."

"You make it sound like we're dating," Kenny teased, though he would have liked it if that was upon his teacher's mind.

"We've already had our first date at your house, and now your parents want me over for dinner, I suppose it does appears that way to everyone around us," Kai chuckled.

"You aren't helping it," Kenny announced.

"Forgive my teasing," Kai apologized.

"No, it's fine," Kenny said. "So, are you going to accept my mother's offer?"

"I'll have to get back to you on that one. How about we discuss the homework now? My roommate, the one you spoke with, has recently developed a habit to stare while we speak on the phone," Kai said.

"If it shall get you from being interrogated, then of course, my dear teacher," Kenny declared with a warm smile.


	9. Chapter 8

Rim: Oh, I finally update. What a surprise for me considering it's been forever since I actually sat down to think about this story. Right...I should finish typing up chapter 10 (9...or however you all call it). Oh and Silverm, if you're still reading along, I think I was planning to write you a note of some kind but my ADD distracted me again and I have to figure out what it was. XD

_**-oooooo-**_

_Chapter 8_

"Kenny, I heard from the guys in your gym class that Coach Parker has been on your case all week," Max peered around Tyson's head to stare at his friend who was miserably poking at the cafeteria Salisbury steak sitting in a muck of brown, chunky gravy and lumpy mashed potatoes. Rei looked up from his own meal of spaghetti to look at his despondent friend stabbing his meal. "Why's Coach P on your case so hard?"

"He has nothing better to do with his time?" Kenny voiced, continuing to jab at the slab of processed meat on the Styrofoam tray in front of him.

"I have a feeling that's not the reason he's on your case as much as I've heard," Max said, picking up his slice of cheese pizza. "I mean, you had to have done something for him to signal in on you. You're like the last person Coach P would hassle."

'Well, I suppose if anyone calls making friends with another man's love interest a reason to hassle someone, then we have the answer right here,' Kenny thought, setting aside his fork, then proceeded to push aside his tray.

"I still believe he has nothing better to do than harass unsuspecting students," Kenny voiced. He was hesitant to tell Max about his situation with Mr. Parker. Standing up from the table, Kenny picked up his tray, carrying it over to the trash can. Tossing it inside, Kenny walked back to the table, grabbing his English book. "I'm going to go ahead and get some work done for class, you guys continue eating, and I'll talk to you later."

"All right, but are you sure you want to study alone?" Rei questioned.

"Yes, I'm sure," Kenny nodded with a smile. "I should be fine."

"What if you see Coach P in the halls? He might try to hassle you again," Max stated.

"I can take care of myself," Kenny assured. "I'm going to class. I'm sure Mr. Hiwatari is already there, so he won't consider harassing me while another teacher is around."

"I guess you're right," Max thought, taking another bite out of his cheese pizza. "Oh, this afternoon, we planned on going to the arcades, you up for the go?"

"Will it involve you going insane on another DDR machine?" Kenny shuddered, remembering the last time he, Tyson, Rei, and Max headed out to Palace Point for the afternoon, and Max taking it upon himself to crown himself king of Dance Dance Revolution until he was literally dragged out of the arcades kicking and screaming. "Because, just to let you know, my dearest friend, I refuse to claim the embarrassment you handed us the last time we went out to Palace Point."

"I'm shocked they didn't ban us from Palace Point yet," Rei shook his head.

"It's not my fault DDR is where my soul lies!" Max exclaimed heatedly.

"Don't drag your soul into this," Kenny remarked. "I believe it sent a statement of concern with your claims."

"Funny," Max pouted. "Fine, I won't cut loose like last time."

"Can we get that statement in blood?" Tyson wondered.

"We can try, but I do believe his blood turned into sugar cane years ago," Rei countered. Kenny smiled softly, listening to the playful banter around the table, as he headed off. Leaving behind the chatter bouncing off the walls of the cafeteria, the brunette strolled down the sparsely empty hall, to where he knew Kai was having a light lunch in his classroom. At times, Kai had once explained, it was better to be hunted by those who cared to shove their ways into other people's lives than to have them find you so they could ruin your day. Kenny hadn't understood the comment when his English teacher explained it.

Rounding the corner into the classroom, he stopped short seeing Coach Parker sitting on Kai's desk, looking down at Kai with a wide grin. By his body posture, Kenny could tell his gym teacher was flirting with Kai. Thinking back on the phrase, Kenny felt he now was beginning to see the truth in the sentence. The annoyance coloring every answer to Kai's words were not heeded upon by the red head leaning in more, definitely invading Kai's personal space.

"How does going out with me tonight to a local bar for a beer sound to you, Kai? That way we can get to know each other a little better?" Coach Parker asked, moving his hand to stroke the back of Kai's. The frown on Kai's face dropped a few degrees, moving his hand from Michael's touch.

"I doubt that will be possible tonight, I have other arrangements this evening," Kai stated, remembering the phone call from his grandfather earlier that morning concerning the man making plans for him to attend one of his grandfather's get-togethers; or as Kai put it often when the man was in one of his moods, 'an attempt to reform him'. He had no doubt it involved his grandfather inviting acquaintances with daughters looking to marry him.

"Don't tell me you have dinner with that boy?" Michael voiced his tone filling with disgust. "I don't understand what you find interesting or attractive about a child?"

"Mister Parker, for the last time, must I tell you that my student happens to be a good friend and is nothing more than a good conversationalist. He's a very bright student, and has an aspiring future ahead of him. Refrain from such childish remarks please," Kai said, turning his attention to the doorway where Kenny stood. Noting the change of attention, Michael followed Kai's line of vision, seeing the subject topic standing in the doorway. With a growl, Michael got up from the desk.

"Pardon my intrusion, I just came to get some work done," Kenny said, moving to his desk and sat down, avoiding the fervent glare from the red head.

"Did you finish the research I gave you for Browning?" Kai questioned his student, ignoring the coach's childish glaring of his student.

"Yes sir, I finished it early this morning for class," Kenny nodded, going through his notebook for the notes he had constructed for class that day. The notes on the English poet Robert Browning was a favor Kai had asked of him the day before when class was ending. Kenny had no objections helping his friend out with obtaining some notes Kai was going to use in a handout for the other students.

"As always, a prompt student," Kai smiled, just as Michael turned around and stormed out of the room. Two pairs of eyes followed the coach's movements then shifted to meet the other's stare.

"It's not very nice of you to ignore your admirer, Mister Hiwatari," the brunette said, a smile lifting to the corners of his mouth whilst his teacher only frowned in a silent scolding manner. "You know I'm only teasing you teacher."

"Comments like that will get you extra work to do," Kai warned, walking over to the desk, staring down at the boy with a light smile. Kenny raised his eyes to his hot teacher, finding those iridescent eyes flickering with amusement.

"You would not dare give me extra work to do," Kenny stated.

"Oh, I wouldn't?" Kai raised a brow. "You seem to not know me very well, Mr. Shinoda."

"Oh really?" Meeting Kai's eyes, Kenny allowed a grin to break through. How could you take a man serious that was just that hot? It was as if he was daring the younger to make a move. Oh, Kenny's imagination could definitely conjure up a very entertaining experience to occur between them, however in their present relationship as just friends, it would not happen.

Kai stared down at the grinning boy, somewhere in the back of his subconscious, a part of him couldn't help note how adorable the smile placed on the brunette's face seemed to brighten his entire composure. It still surprised him, how anyone could possibly overlook such tempting cuteness as what sat before him. A sudden realization towards his student and his previous thoughts jolted him out of his contemplation. Shaking his thoughts clear, Kai returned the smile. "You're nothing but an imp underneath that mask, aren't you?"

"You shouldn't let my secret be known to the world," Kenny exclaimed playfully. "At least not until I graduate, then you can tell the new batch of kids about how you met a devil in disguise."

"You're a devil now, instead of an imp?" Kai laughed. "I'm finding out more and more about you Mr. Shinoda. How have you managed to fool the world for so long?"

"Practice," Kenny said simply, listening to the sound of the rich laughter coming from his teacher. It was a whimsical sound which could easily hypnotize all who heard it, at least in Kenny's opinion. He could sit there in that quiet classroom forever and listen to the sound without ever tiring of it.

"Excuse my rudeness, Mr. Hiwatari, but you have a visitor in the teacher's lounge." Kai's laughter faded as Vice Principal Balcov entered the classroom. His eyes studied the young teacher, and his closeness to the student. Kai swore that a frown settled between his brows after only a moment's observation. Stepping away from Kenny, Kai shifted his full attention towards the vice principal.

"May I ask who my visitor is?" Kai questioned, he knew for a fact that both Tala and Bryan were currently at work, so neither one of them would be visiting him. That of course left only one person that would have an infinite amount of time on their hands to visit him like this. He just hoped it wasn't that person because it was only going to end with a headache.

"Your grandfather," Vice Principal responded. "He wanted to speak with you as soon as possible concerning arrangements you had tonight."

Kai turned his attention fully to Kenny for a brief second. "Kenny, would you mind giving me the notes you've composed so I can make copies for class?"

"Of course not Mister Hiwatari," Kenny said, offering the notes to his teacher, who then turned back to the vice principal, following the man out of the classroom. Kenny had a feeling that the vice principal was expecting pretty much the same as Coach Parker was when it came to the friendship between him and Kai. It wasn't that they were really doing anything wrong besides joking around, so how did everyone around them figure that it was more serious than they knew.

Kai walked down the hall with Vice Principal Balcov, the older man not saying a word until they were down at the end of the hallway. Kai found gray eyes studying him in silent convictions. The corners of his mouth dipped down, trying to meet the vice principal's stare, however, every time he thought he successfully met it, the man turned his attention away to somewhere else.

"Is there something you would like to say to me Vice Principal Balcov?" Kai inquired, putting out the question, wondering if the man would say something.

"Why would you think that, Mister Hiwatari," Boris commented.

"Well, I am not blind to the stares I'm receiving from you," Kai replied. "I sense you are convicting me of things that I am innocent of."

"Only those who are guilty notice conviction where it is not," Boris stated. "Do you have something to hide to accuse me of such a thing, Mister Hiwatari?"

"You do not have to be guilty all the time to notice conviction," Kai corrected. "I have nothing to hide, but when you stare at me as if I've done something wrong, then it's very noticeable."

"Tell me, Mister Hiwatari, that young man in your classroom, is he one of your students?"

"Yes, he is," Kai nodded.

"Is he the one that Mister Parker suspended?" Boris raised a brow, turning his attention to the paperwork in Kai's hands. "It looks like he went through a lot of trouble to get on your good side."

"I asked him if he wouldn't mind gathering notes for me to use for class. He has an excellent grasp of literature, so I decided to that a different course of action in getting his classmates to understand the work. I believe he was thinking about being a teacher himself," Kai smiled. Stopping at the teacher's lounge, Kai shifted all this attention to the vice principal. "That young man has a promising future, as a teacher I am focusing on that and nothing more. Good afternoon, Vice Principal."

Leaving no room for the older man to say anything, Kai entered the teacher's lounge, a sigh escaping his lips as he walked over to where an older man with gray hair sat. Gray eyes met Kai's auburn ones, studying the young man with a once over before standing from his seat. If there was one thing Kai could say about his grandfather since the man learned he was gay, it was that he did not waste a minute criticizing Kai regardless of what the situation was.

"What are you wearing boy?" Voltaire frowned, looking at Kai's "professional" attire. "You are at work, not a bar."

"I wouldn't wear this to a bar, grandfather," Kai said. "You don't have to wear a suit and tie in order to work."

"That is exactly what is wrong with your generation, Kai," Voltaire stated. "You do not hold any value to how you dress around others, and only set bad examples for the next generation to follow. My teachers would never have thought about dressing like you."

"I'm sure they didn't have khakis in your time," Kai assured. "So they couldn't dress like me."

"Are you back talking me, boy?" Voltaire glared.

"No, grandfather, I'm not. I was just making a statement. May I question to discover why you've decided to show up at my job, besides to critique my work attire?" Kai asked. "My next class starts up in ten minutes, so I wanted to get these notes ran off and passed out at the beginning of class."

"I heard from your supervisor that you spend a lot of time with your students," Voltaire commented, ignoring his grandson's explanation of why he wanted to hurry up back to class.

"Grandfather don't start," Kai warned, knowing where it was leading.

"I wasn't going to start anything. I just wanted to make sure that you haven't decided to involve yourself with your students," Voltaire stated.

"That's what I'm talking about," Kai voiced. "I would never allow myself to take advantage of the children in my care. I don't know why you would think of something like that. I might be gay, but there's no way I would do something as low as what you're suggesting. You can trust me to be on my best behavior, grandfather."

"I'm going to hold you to that. I came to remind you not to be late for my dinner," Voltaire said.

"Yes, of course grandfather," Kai nodded.

_**-oooooo-**_

Rim: I'm finally getting around to where I'm going. I might actually get around to the fair chapter that I've been wanting to write some time soon. Yes, now moving on...I do believe there's another update I must spend forever on trying to update.


	10. Chapter 9

Rim: I finally decided to stop being stingy and let you all have this chapter. And I would like you all to welcome the newest, and most sensual player to the game. You ask who? Just read on and tell me what you think. I'm now going to watch Penn & Teller's: Bullshit now, one of the greatest shows to ever come around in the last few years.

_**-oooooo-**_

_Chapter 9_

Kenny stared at where Tyson was playing a game of Marvel Super Heroes versus Street Fighter with Rei at an arcade machine. Max, scarily enough, was down racing some kids from their school in the go carts. The very thought of the sugar high blonde behind the wheel of anything brought a chill down Kenny's spine. It was bad enough Max was partially insane, but allowing him free range to go as fast as he wanted on a course…

"What's wrong, Kenny?" Rei questioned, tilting his head to the side to see a shudder roll down his friend's spine.

"Just thinking about how many people are going to die when Max gets his license," Kenny replied. The remark brought a laugh out of Rei, who turned his attention back to Tyson trying to perform an aerial combo with Spiderman.

"I can agree with you, I'm going to be hesitant to ride anywhere with him when he has a driving permit," Rei nodded, blocking the attack. Rolling the joystick counter clockwise and pressing the hard punch button, he had Ryu perform a hadoken, sending Spiderman flying back to the other side of the screen.

"You cheap fireball throwing bastard," Tyson growled.

"Oh, and what about your backing me into a corner then web shooting repeatedly tactics?" Rei responded.

"I was not holding you in the corner. Every time I came close to you, you would hit me with a fireball," Tyson argued. "I only held you in the corner once."

"You are so full of it Tyson," Rei scoffed, bringing out Captain America to do a tag team special, depleting the rest of Spiderman's energy and sending him flying off screen as Chun Li came onscreen.

"Ah! You killed Spiderman!" Tyson screamed, drawing a few bystanders' attention to the heated match that was going on. "You are going to pay for that. Once I get Ryu out the way, it'll just be me, you, Chun Li, and Captain America. And then you will beg for my mercy."

"Oh, we will see Tyson," Rei smirked.

"Hey, what's up with those two?" Max walked up drinking a large soda.

"Done killing pedestrians and old people?" Rei teased. Looking out the corner of his eyes, he watched Max frown, his bottom lip jutting out.

"Very funny Rei," Max laughed sarcastically. "For your information, I can drive just fine."

"In your mind, you mean?" Tyson voiced.

"Oh shut up, both of you," Max glowered, before turning his attention to Kenny leaning against the wall. "You believe I can drive, don't you, Kenny?"

"Well…" Kenny started. "I'm sure you would know not to hit pedestrians and old people." For a long second, things were silent. That was until Tyson and Rei burst out in laughter; Max glowered at the brunette who simply smiled.

"With friends like you, I certainly don't need to look elsewhere for insults. Fine, since you're all such comedians, then you'll have to drag me off the DDR machine once more. I was going to go peacefully this time, but all deals are off!" Max stated, walking away from the two laughing boys on the arcade machine and brunette who continued to smile.

"Do you think we should stop him?" Kenny suggested.

"No, let him vent all he wants. We can just leave him if he won't come peacefully," Rei shook his head.

"Hey, Kenny, I've been meaning to ask you," Tyson said, continuing his match with Rei. "What was up with Mister Hiwatari today? He was in a bitchy mood the entire class period like he was PMSing or something. What happened to him during lunch?"

"He was fine until Vice Principal told him he had a visitor in the teacher's lounge. When he came back for class he was what we saw in class. Whatever occurred is beyond me," Kenny shrugged. He was just as curious to know what happened, but it wasn't his place to intrude into his friend's affairs. If Kai wanted to tell him what transpired, he would do so eventually.

"I didn't know you were friendly with Mister Hiwatari, Kenny," Rei said. "He's one of the most popular teachers in the school from what I hear."

"They talk a lot sometimes during lunch periods," Tyson announced.

"Is he as cool as some of the students in his other classes say?" Rei asked.

"He's the devil," Tyson swore.

"I would like an opinion other than your own, Tyson," Rei smiled, blocking another one of Tyson's moves before executing one of Ryu's supers, taking Chun Li's energy down to the last leg just as the clock ran to zero, announcing him the winner.

"You evil whore," Tyson glowered.

"How about you two stop with the rivalry and we make sure that Max doesn't handcuff himself to a DDR machine?" Kenny proposed pushing himself off the wall he was leaning against.

"That sounds like a plan," Rei nodded, moving away from the arcade machine. "So, tell me, what's Mister Hiwatari like?"

"You've never had him for a teacher have you?" Tyson questioned, moving from the arcade machine to follow the two. "I'm telling you Rei, there is nothing great about the man. He's the devil. He won't let me enjoy my naps and is always asking me these difficult questions he knows I can't answer."

"Maybe if you studied and didn't sleep through class," Kenny sighed. "Mister Hiwatari's a great teacher. He cares a lot about all his students, especially the lazy ones like you Tyson Kinomiya. Not to mention he has an infinite amount of patience."

"Dealing with Tyson…" Rei started, a smile creeping into the corner of his mouth where a fang popped through. "One has to have something of the sort."

"You know…one day you're going to have to stop that," Tyson said, rubbing his arms. "You're giving me goose bumps again. You know I hate that smile."

It was creepy when the black hair Chinese male did that, bear in mind his canines were longer than most people by nature, so when he smiled one of his trademark fang grins, an eerie sort of chill shot down your spine. Expecting the fanged boy to pounce any second onto the unsuspecting person and chomp down on them. Tyson use to poke fun at Rei being part tiger due to the fangs and eyes, incidentally, the night Rei pretended to be possessed by the spirit of a white tiger offered him a valuable lesson in leaving the dark haired young man alone about his quirks.

"Well too bad Tyson, I can't change myself because you don't like my teeth," Rei grinned again, the other fang poking out from the other side of his mouth.

"Yes you can, get those things filed down," Tyson shuddered.

"Ignoring Tyson, let's get back to Mister Hiwatari. I heard he graduated out of state somewhere with a Bachelor's in English," Rei said.

"We really haven't talked about where he graduated from. We're always discussing literature and stuff," Kenny said. "He even reads my father's books too."

"You finally found someone on your level, Kenny," Rei said. "It's great that you can finally talk to someone whose actually on the same level as you without you having to dumb yourself down for them."

"Why does that sound like that comment was directed at me?" Tyson grumbled.

"Maybe it was," Rei grinned, flashing off his fangs.

"Will you stop that?" Tyson complained. "I swear you're creeping me out."

"So, does Mister Hiwatari talk about himself a lot, or is he one of those types who isn't comfortable telling about himself? From what I've seen, he's a really open teacher with his students," Rei said.

"He's not as private about himself as you would think. I haven't learned a lot about him yet, but of course most of our time is talk about poets and other literature," Kenny smiled. "It's fun to talk to him and eventually learn out things that he likes and doesn't like and how growing up was for him."

"That was back in the fifth century, right," Tyson laughed.

"If I was your teacher and ever heard that, you would never pass, Tyson," Rei joked.

"I feel like I'm not going to pass as it is, don't jinx me. Let's just go make sure that a certain blonde doesn't proclaim himself king of the DDR again," Tyson stated.

_**-oooo-**_

Kai was beyond the limit of being bored. To say the least, he had fallen into a bottomless pit of ennui as he stood against one of the large pillars in the hall which his grandfather's party was being held. The old man always rented out some expensive place to show off all who came just how well off he was, more than wanting to show his guests a good time. Kai couldn't say this method was his style; 'the rich' as he should put it made games of things like this while a normal person would be satisfied with the amount of people that showed up.

Looking around, he spotted his grandfather conversing with a group of ladies and gentlemen of his age group, the more younger businessmen and women roaming here and there looking self important. There was another group of men and women his age somewhere around he was trying his best to stir clear of. Among that group, half of the women were possible targets which would be flung at him by his grandfather in hopes of turning him straight, so Kai could marry a nice girl. Because it wasn't going to happen, he found it so much easier to appear uninterested in socializing.

"You know, that frown doesn't suit you at all, Kai Hiwatari," a voice replied from Kai's left. Turning his head to the side, Kai's mouth almost dropped open before he reinforced his composure. Walking up to him was not only someone he knew well from his college days, but was the one person that he tried to have a serious relationship with before it fell apart two weeks later.

A young man equal in height to Kai with wild orange hair pulled back into a ponytail positioned himself more than a little close to Kai. Bright aqueous green eyes trailed over Kai, a sensual smile pulling from one corner of the man's mouth to the other. Despite the formal attire he wore, nothing about this man's sheer sexual aura had faded since last they saw each other. More than one of their many times together were spent in bed, satisfying an overabundant sexual appetite fueled by--actually Kai had no idea why he spent most of his time engaged in animalistic sex with this man other than the reason they were physically attracted to each other.

"Brooklyn Masefield, it's nice to see you again," Kai inclined his head to his ex, moving to put some space between them. The action brought a chuckle from the wild haired man, moving even closer to Kai than before.

"There's no reason for you to be nervous around me, Kai," Brooklyn grinned. "It's not like we're strangers. We know more about each other than anyone could know."

"Intimately," Kai corrected. "We're practically strangers on all other levels, Brooklyn."

"It's the same thing to me," Brooklyn shrugged. "They say sometimes the best way to get to know someone is sexually. The way they make love tells more about that person than words ever could."

"That's not true all the time," Kai argued, looking away from the man who was too close to him. He was over Brooklyn completely, but it seemed his body did not forget one second of intimate touching which transpired between them. A fire wanted to react to the ample sexual energy crackling around the red head, however Kai's self control won out, reminding him that if he opened that door once again, the only thing he had to look forward to was a repeat of their past. When Kai came to a realization one morning after an entire night of wild sex with Brooklyn that there was no real spark between them beyond the sex. Even Brooklyn had not denied it, their breakup was a passing moment.

"In our case it was," Brooklyn grinned, slipping a hand down the spine of Kai's back, causing a chill to rumble through his nerves. "Your body is still sensitive to my touch, Kai, even after all this time. I heard you weren't in a relationship after we broke up."

"That doesn't mean you can return yourself into my life. What are you doing here anyway?" Kai interrupted, receiving another throaty laugh from the male beside him.

"It so happens I was invited to come by my employer who is an acquaintance to your grandfather. I figured if I came, I would be able to see you again. What have you been doing with yourself since last I saw you," Brooklyn questioned.

"I'm an English teacher at a high school," Kai replied.

"You're a teacher?" Brooklyn blinked. "I would have never thought that you would actually go through with that teaching thing. I suppose you really don't need the money considering you're in your grandfather's will."

"I'm a teacher because I like teaching, Brooklyn. Not because I need a hobby," Kai said, turning his eyes on his former boyfriend. "I have plenty of students that I enjoy teaching to." At that comment, the image of his young brunette friend popped into his head, a gentle smile curving the corners of his mouth into the most adorable smile Kai could ever imagine.

"You seem to have a particular student which you really like to teach to," Brooklyn analyzed.

"What?" Kai came out of his thoughts.

"Your eyes changed when you said that. I'm presume there's a particular student who has caught your attention. I would have never figured you like them young," Brooklyn stated.

"It's not like that," Kai argued. "He's a very good friend, one of my most brightest students. I would never distract him from his studies by getting into a relationship with him. His future is one of the most important things to me."

"Even while you're saying this, a part of you wants to keep him for yourself. Anyone who looks into your eyes can see it, Kai. You're the type of person who doesn't get involved with someone unless you see something in them that fits--"

"It's not like before," Kai interjected. "Even if I like him, he's still a minor and he's a good friend. I'm not jeopardizing his future for my selfish needs."

"If you like him?" Brooklyn gave another throaty laugh, leaning down towards Kai's ear. He allowed his breath to tickled the outer contour of the dual haired male's ear, lowering his voice a few degrees until it was a husky whisper. "I doubt your heart actually believes that load of bullshit your mouth is spouting. I believe you're just afraid to see what will happen if you open your heart up to someone again."

Kai opened his mouth, only to close it again as Brooklyn moved away from him. The smile on the red head's face was still intact, if not growing more than a few millimeters on each side. Kai turned his eyes away from Brooklyn, staring out at the crowd of people who were oblivious to the conversation that was going on. He had nothing to say, not because it was true, but because there was nothing he would be able to say that Brooklyn wouldn't counter.

"Maybe one day when I have some free time, I'll stop by your school and find out what this kid is like. Just make certain you wait the two years when he's legal. I don't want to see your case brought to the firm, they won't let me take the case because I have personal ties to you," Brooklyn grinned, leaning down to quickly peck Kai on the lips before anyone notice, then walking away. Kai had a feeling from the tips of his toes to the top strands of his hair that this wasn't over by any stretch of thought.


	11. Chapter 10

Rim: I've returned to this story finally, and have a treat for everyone involved. I'm releasing four chapters at once, that way, you all won't ask for another chapter for a while. And I'll take my time updating the next chapter by 3048! Just kidding, stop looking at me like that. But here you all go, my gift for disappearing with this story. Enjoy.

_**-------------oooooo--------------**_

_Chapter 10_

Enervated, Kai dragged himself into the front door of the house, more than glad that another one of his grandfather's parties had ended. However he would have been more than ecstatic had his grandfather not found him, and the whole party turned out to be a show of making him out to be a prized cow. Kai had never been more embarrassed in his life, as girl after girl came up to him and chattered a hole through his head, his only saving grace had been that he had to get up for work the next day, so he couldn't offer any late nights drinking coffee or what not with any of them.

And not to mention, after his little encounter with Brooklyn, the red head seemed to disappear completely from the party. It sort of worried him when Brooklyn did things like that; the red head usually planned something under those conditions.

"Kai, is that you?" Tala stuck his head out of the kitchen door, half a cookie in his mouth. Kai stared at his roommate with a quizzical brow, but said nothing as he made his way over to the couch to seat himself. Tala came out the kitchen, flopping down on the arm of the couch to study his friend. "You look like you were barely saved from being mauled."

"I feel like I was mauled," Kai grunted, closing his eyes. "And don't you get any crumbs in the couch or on the floor or you will be vacuuming tonight."

"Yes mother, I won't be a slob and cause us to have roaches," Tala chimed as Kai made a blind, playful swipe at him, not even coming close to reaching the red head that was on the other end of the couch.

"Shut up you ass," Kai said.

"Don't tell me, your grandfather decided to throw you to a group of single young women and told them that you weren't married," Tala said, munching on his cookie.

"Don't bring back the horror," Kai pleaded. "I felt like a prized cow up for the slaughterhouse. You have no idea how many numbers I didn't want that I came home with." To prove his point, Kai reached into his pocket, pulling out a bundle of slips of paper, letting them drop on the couch. Tala leaned over, sorting through the list.

"A Lisa, an Elizabeth, a Kimberly, a Destine, two Jamies, hey, you even got a Charlene in here. You know Bryan always wanted to go out with a Charlene, you should save that one for him," Tala commented.

"Shut up, I hate you," Kai glowered, at his friend.

"What, just because you don't want them, that doesn't mean that you can't share the wealth and look out for your friends. Now if you had some cute boys who were like--"

"Shut up," Kai repeated. "I'm going to bed now."

"Oh yes, before you leave, I was going to tell you that you received a call while you were gone," Tala remembered. "It was more like a courtesy call to verify your residence I should put it, your caller stayed on the phone only long enough to say hello to me and inquire a few small notes of how life has been treating me and what I've been doing with my life."

"Who was it?" Kai knew that it couldn't have been Kenny; Tala would have mentioned that right off the bat before Kai could have said anything about his night. He had a sinking feeling that the person who called for him while he was gone was the exact same person he met up with that very night. "Please don't tell me it was someone I knew."

"Fine, I won't tell you it was not only someone you knew, but someone you knew very well in college," Tala replied, at the exact same moment Kai groaned. "From the way you're acting, I'm going to presume that you met up with the person who called you tonight."

"Was it Brooklyn?" Kai gave a pleading look in hopes he was wrong about who called him. "Please tell me it was someone else and not him. Someone we haven't seen since like middle school. Please don't tell me that it was someone we went to college with."

"I would lie and tell you it was the dumpling," Tala smiled in reference to Kenny. "However, I wouldn't want you to be surprised and freaked out by Masefield's sudden appearance at your job."

"What do you mean sudden appearance at my job?" Kai sat up immediately, his full attention on his long term friend and housemate.

"Well from the way he was telling me, he plans to come see you one of these days, or tomorrow for that manner, I didn't question him too much on his evil deeds. You know how Brooklyn is about that," Tala commented.

"You aren't serious," Kai gaped.

"Oh, I'm about as serious as a dog in heat," Tala replied. "So, you better figure out what you're going to do about Brooklyn and then your student."

"What does Kenny have to do with this?" Kai frowned, not understanding partially what his friend was implying. Tala rolled his eyes; Tala didn't know why Kai was denying the attraction he was beginning to feel for the young teen, but if he continued to play the ignorant merchant, he was going to wind up wondering why he had lost out on the perfect opportunity to expand his good fortune.

"For someone so smart, you're an idiotic one, Kai," Tala shook his head. "Kenny has everything to do with this, considering you are attracted to the boy. If Brooklyn shows back up in your life, don't you think it's going to affect Kenny? Are you planning to tell him about you and Brooklyn before he's blindsided by the information."

"Kenny has no reason to know about what happened in the past with Brooklyn and I. He's just a friend after all. I don't tell all my friends about the relationships that I was in," Kai replied.

"Because the two friends you have already know about what you went through with Brooklyn considering we were there," Tala pointed out. "And towards that statement, are you sure you want to label him just a friend?"

"He is just a friend," Kai assured.

"Doesn't this so called friend as you call him, like you?" Tala quirked a brow.

"It's just a slight infatuation, he'll eventually get over it," Kai assured. Kai heard Tala snort at the remark, the red head rolling his eyes once again, getting up from the couch to go back into the kitchen for another cookie. "And you seem to be in disagreement with it."

"Disagreement? Who me? No, of course not!" Tala called sarcastically over his shoulder. "Why would I be in disagreement that you're denying there's something between you? You have a special connection with him Kai you shouldn't blow it off as a passing phase."

"He's going to get over his crush," Kai guaranteed. "He's going to see that there are boys his age that are going to become interested in him, and he's going to become interested in them, it's bound to happen."

"Keep telling yourself things like that," Tala shook his head.

"I'm going to bed, I'm not worrying about you and your theories," Kai announced, getting up from the chair to trudge his way to the staircase. He had no idea why his housemate got the notion that Kenny's infatuation with him would last, he was still a kid regardless of being a brilliant young man. Youthful love was often short lived and over long before they knew what they had. He was sure Kenny was the same way.

_**----------oooo----------**_

"Can someone tell me what the last few lines of the paragraph meant?" Kai looked around his classroom at the silent faces looking down at the books in front of them. Kai sighed inwardly, scanning his eyes back to Kenny to save him, when unexpectedly someone from the middle row raised there hands. Blinking back his surprise, Kai's eyes honed in on the girl with long red hair braided down her back.

"Miss Warren, what a pleasure of you to be giving your opinion today," Kai smiled. So there was still one child left in his class other than Kenny who had a brain fitted in their cranium. "Please, tell us what the last few lines meant."

The girl leaned forward on her hands with a pretty smile, her head cocked to one side looking at Kai. Using her hand to brush a bang from her face, the girl batted her eyes at Kai. "Well, I think that like the dude is telling the other dude that his wife was like being…um…you know, like a slut and he got rid of her because of it, so like the new chick he's trying to hook up with shouldn't be like that or he'll get rid of her too."

"That's what you do in those cases," said a stout green haired young man sitting in the back. "Why would anyone want a chick that's going around being friendly to everyone like that?"

"Oh come down off your cloud, Steve," the girl rolled her eyes at the football player in the back of the room. "You would get rid of a girl she asked you the time." A trickle of laughter erupted from the middle row of the room, as the bell for rang, dismissing the students from class. The students who were half sleep on their desks woke up, packing their things to leave for the day.

"All right boys and girls, we will continue this discussion tomorrow, I want everyone to read _Home-Thoughts, from Aboard_, _Home-Thoughts, from the Sea_, _Meeting at Night_, and _Parting at Morning_ by next week Friday. For the rest of the time, I want you all to prepare for your test on Monday. Make sure you study everything we've gone over last month, anything could be on the test," Kai announced. The remark received more than a few groans from his students as many of them left. Shaking his head, Kai stood up to walk over to the board he wrote earlier notes on.

Another day was over without so much as an incident of Brooklyn showing up at his job. Of the course of the past four work days since meeting up with the red head, Kai's paranoia knew no bounds, worrying and preparing for a sudden appearance at any time. So far, there was no more phone calls, no messages, not even any special delivery lunches. It was as if he and Brooklyn lived in two separate worlds all together that did not coexist.

"Mister Hiwatari…"

The soft, breathy voice pierced through Kai's thoughts, turning around to find he was now alone with the red headed girl from the middle row. The young woman twisted up to Kai, pulling down the black, leather skirt that should have been illegal for even a prostitute to wear. The almost see through fishnet top she wore was only halfway covered by a low cut dark blue tube top.

"Yes, Miss. Warren?" Kai inquired, watching the girl slowly running the tip of her tongue over her lips, moistening them; her eyes flitting with some unknown thoughts he could only imagine was a plan to seduce him. She wasn't the first girl in one of his classes who tried it over the course of his career working as a teacher. In fact, he was certain she wouldn't be the last to believe a supple young female body was the ticket to 'get in good' with him.

"I was just wondering if you would give me a good way to study by to pass the test," the girl questioned, swaying her hips back and forth.

"The only thing I can tell you is go over the notes, Miss Warren," Kai smiled just a trite, turning his eyes away to find Kenny and Tyson silently standing in the doorway watching this play out. The brunette held a slightly amused stare tinged with something indistinguishable. The bluenette beside him appeared anxious for whatever reason roamed through his head.

"Are you sure there's not another way I can pass?" She stepped closer to Kai who took a step back wearily.

"I have one suggestion Salema," Tyson called from the doorway. "You can join a study group that specializes in getting you what you need the quick and easy way since you have so much fun trying to find the new flavor of the week." The girl whirled around, a flush coloring her face, noting Kenny and Tyson there. Dashing to her desk and grabbing her things, she glared at the two and rushed out the room.

"You have no couth at all, Tyson," Kenny commented walking into the room.

"It's true though," Tyson said, following Kenny. "You didn't think I was going to stand around and watch her try to hit on someone else."

"You're still mad she turned you down, aren't you?" Kenny questioned.

"Damn right I am," Tyson huffed. "It was just one movie! One movie and she turns me down without so much as telling me the truth, then turns around and goes out with Carlos! Who would go out without Carlos that's not desperate for a quick pick me up."

"You'll find that person who will appreciate you, just stop venting," Kenny remarked, patting Tyson on the shoulder.

"What brings you two back, kindly saving my life?" Kai asked, leaning on the side of his desk.

"I need a miracle to pass your test, I realized," Tyson announced.

"Oh?" Kai smiled. "Maybe if you stayed awake in my class Tyson, you wouldn't have a problem keeping up with the material. I know you're a smart young man, if you applied yourself like Kenny, I'm sure you wouldn't be announcing that to me."

"You're supposed to take pity on me," Tyson whined, giving his English teacher a wide eyed look of horror.

"I would have mercy on you if you applied yourself more," Kai replied. "Now if that was the only thing you had to tell me, then you should hurry home and study your notes for the test. One hour of studying each night isn't as hard as you believe."

"Demon teacher, you have no sympathy," Tyson complained.

"Now Tyson, Kai has a truth in what he just said," Kenny chuckled, as Tyson whirled around to stare at Kenny.

"So says my friend the walking library of English literature," Tyson pouted.

"I was going to ask you if I could borrow your teacher's edition to make some extra notes for Tyson on the poets we've studied recently. I'm going to try to dumb it down so even he can understand it," Kenny stated.

"Oh thanks, I just feel better about my life now," Tyson grumbled.

"Who was the one that begged me to come back and ask my friend in the first place?" Kenny raised a brow at Tyson at the same time as Kai reached on his desk, picking up the large teacher edition textbook on his desk and handing it to Kenny.

"If you need anything else I will be here until four-thirty preparing some material for my freshman class, or if I've already left, you can reach me on my cell phone. Return the book any time you're done with it," Kai instructed.

"You have his cell phone number?" Tyson gasped.

"Tyson," Kenny said warningly.

"Oh fine, I won't say a word yet…" Tyson promised.

"Teach him something so I can hold it up for the entire world to see that Tyson Kinomiya hasn't allowed cobwebs to reside in his head," Kai said changing the subject, a grin pulling the corners of his mouth upwards.

"Teachers aren't suppose to say that about their students!" Tyson exclaimed partially indignant. "See Kenny, I told you he was the devil! He enjoys watching me struggle in his class. I bet he goes home every night and plot how he's going to torture me the next day."

"Hardly, that would be a waste of precious time spent enjoying my life," Kai teased, watching the bluenette flush whilst being dragged away by his friend. Kai listened to the protesting and accusations of his student until the sound was well down the hall.

Chuckling to himself, Kai went back to his job of cleaning the dry erase board of the notes from class, thinking about how Tyson's college professors were going to be driven into an early retirement behind him. Kai could only imagine the time they were going to have rousing Tyson from his late afternoon naps; Kenny trying his best to keep the teacher from going to jail for murder. How he would love to see what college had in store for those two.

"You seem quite amused, Kai. Exactly what's on your mind?"

Once more interrupted from his thoughts, Kai turned around to find Coach Parker walking into the room, a scowl lining his brows. At the rate of all the unwanted attention, Kai was going to believe eventually if it kept up God loved throwing red heads at him. Lowering the dry eraser from clearing the board, Kai closed his eyes, saying a prayer of patience to get him through this encounter.

"Coach Parker, must we go through this another day?" Kai inquired despairingly over the subject.

"We wouldn't go through this if you weren't so interested in being with a child. I'm telling you Kai that he has you fooled. He's not as you see him," Michael argued.

"For the last time, Coach Parker," Kai stressed. "I am not involved with my student. He is merely an acquaintance, much like you are to me no matter how close I am to revoking even that title. I have no romantic ties with him, and really anticipate the day you will come to recognize the platonic basis standing between myself and my student."

"You've never bothered with more than a formal relationship with any of your students, then you suddenly inconvenience yourself with spending time with--"

"Inconvenience myself?" Kai blinked, disconcertion overtaking any calm he reserved to handle this situation and turning it into exasperation. "Finding someone with whom I can share my common love of literature with is not an inconvenience, Mister Parker. What I find as a so-called 'inconvenience' appears before me in the form of a jealous man who acts more like a child than the child does. Who are you to elect what beleaguers me or not? You can not assume you know me so well, Mister Parker."

"I don't understand why you care so much about a child," Michael shook his head disbelievingly.

"Of course you wouldn't," Kai snapped. "You don't involve yourself with your students on a personal level to see what they hope to achieve. I became a teacher so I could make a difference in the lives of the students who look to me for knowledge. You might presume it's due to physical or sexual attraction, but do not presume such biased bullshit from me."

"You shouldn't have riled him up, my friend." Kai and Michael both turned their eyes to the doorway, Kai finding Brooklyn leaning against the frame. "When Kai's like that, he's very hard to calm down."

"Who the hell are you?" Michael demanded.

"The name's Brooklyn Masefield, and who the hell I am is Kai's boyfriend," Brooklyn introduced, boldly walking up to Michael, studying the other red head before narrowing his eyes in challenge. "Who the hell are you?"

"I'm--" Michael started.

"No one of importance to me," Brooklyn waved off, turning his attention to Kai with a wide grin. "I came to see you honey cakes, how about we go have fun at my place. I haven't seen you for a couple of nights. My bed is getting lonely thinking about you."

"Brooklyn," Kai trailed off, feeling an unwanted flush heating his cheeks as he avoided the sexy lopsided grin trademark to the wild haired red head. "I'm at work…can you refrain from saying things like that. Someone could overhear you."

"But I love rousing that look from you, it's adorable," Brooklyn winked; out of the corner of his eyes he dismissed Michael who clenched his jaw. A tic permanently throbbing as Michael left without saying a word. When Brooklyn was certain the other red head was gone, he gave Kai a wider grin. "And that's how you get rid of trash."

"Brooklyn…"

"Hm? You love me more than ever for stopping that altercation before it really got out of control? You don't have to thank me, just go out with me to dinner tonight. I won't even ask you to come home with me."

"No…" Kai voiced.

"And why not?" Brooklyn tilted his head to the side, hooding his eyes. "You can't tell me that you would have preferred me to stay out of it."

"I thank you for your…" Kai searched through words until he found the word suitable for exactly what Brooklyn did, applying it to his sentence. "Inimitable assistance, I probably won't have to worry about him for months now."

"That being enough reason to thank me by having dinner with me," Brooklyn concluded with another wink. "You know it's useless to argue with me on this. I always got what I wanted out of you, Kai."

"That's not something you should be proud about," Kai sighed in defeat, gathering his things from behind his desk.

"Maybe, but it's fun."


	12. Chapter 11

Rim: The second new chapter. Not much to say, just keep enjoying.

_**----------------oooooo----------------**_

_Chapter 11_

"It looks like he already left for the day," Tyson remarked, looking around the classroom only to find one of the school's janitors sweeping up scattered loose sheets of notebook paper under a desk in the back row. Looking down at his watch, it read 3:02 , no more than twenty minutes since both he and Kenny asked to use their English teacher's teacher edition textbook to make notes for the test in the library. "He certainly didn't waste any time getting out of here before he's ambushed by God only knows. First it was Coach Parker right, now it's Salema. If you don't watch it Kenny, he's going to be yanked right from under you by some mysterious red head at this school."

"Ha ha, funny Tyson," Kenny said, leaving the classroom. Tyson followed his friend, walking in step with the brunette as they headed down the empty hallway to the school's entrance to leave.

"I'm not laughing," Tyson voiced. "I'm just stating that you have yet to make any real move on him, yet you're so in love with him that you had this look that wished Salema would have combusted into flames for hitting on Kai."

"I'm not commenting."

"You know it's true." Tyson tilted his head to the side, observing the expression on his friend's face. "I know you, Kenny. You can try to rationalize any number of excuses as to why you're playing the role of the 'Good Samaritan' friend when all you really want is to have him treat you like gold."

"Why are we having this conversation?" Kenny wondered.

"Because I grow tired of you being an old man. You're still a kid, Kenny, like me. We're allowed to be jealous and stingy when it comes to someone we like you know. For all you know, he's off with who knows right now," Tyson complained. "And here you stand with me."

"He probably finished the work he had to do for his freshman class and went home, that's no reason to start panicking," Kenny shrugged. "Secondly, why are we having this conversation?"

"Because lately it's been irking me how you've been so mellow about your feelings," Tyson huffed.

"Irking? What? Is Tyson Kinomiya using big words again?" Kenny playfully teased.

"You know, if you weren't my best friend since forever, I would shove your little ass into a locker and leave you there," Tyson said slowly, his face slacking with a frown. "See, don't come crying to me when you find out that he's secretly dating like half the people in this school unbeknownst to you. I'll just say 'see, I told you so' and go about my merry way."

"For one, I seriously have misgivings towards our teacher whoring his services out to half the school," Kenny began. "Secondly, to be so cruel to your best friend is terrible. If I ever need to cry my soul out, remind me to employ Rei for that job. Finally, I have no right to force my feelings on anyone no matter how attracted to them I am."

"I doubt you will need to push. I bet my allowance for the next six months that he's interested in you on some level, you just have to give him a little nudge to remind him that you're interested," Tyson commented.

"Even if he is interested, I'm a minor."

"Two years, or should I say one year and five months before you're of legal age where no one can say anything about your relationship if you're seen out in public shopping together," Tyson waved off.

"It will still be a problem if I'm in high school," Kenny corrected.

"Once you're legal, you will have seven months before you can do whatever you want in public, just don't get arrested for indecent exposure," Tyson laughed.

"How about you go home before I recant all promises to help you pass?"

"Fine, I'll leave you alone." Tyson held up his hands, a goofy grin dancing in the corners of his mouth. "So what do you plan to do about returning Mister Hiwatari's book? I guess you could always return it to him tomorrow."

"I think I'll just call his house and ask for directions from one of his roommates if he's not there. There's no point in me holding on to the book," Kenny shrugged at the exact same moment Tyson's jaw dropped to the ground whilst coming to a halt.

"You have his home number too?" Tyson gawked. "When were you going to tell me that you had his home number also? What else are you hiding from me that I should know about? Are you pregnant too?"

"Pr--what?"

"Oh sorry, too much _General Hospital_."

"Yeah…I see that," Kenny commented, side glancing his friend. "Moving on with the subject, it's not such a big deal that I have his home number. He left it with my parents that time when Coach Parker decided to suspend me and Kai cleared my name. That's the only reason I have it, it's not as if he gave it to me for any other purpose but to get in contact with him about assignments."

"Where were you that you couldn't receive the number personally. It's like he was unofficially give your parents notice that you two are interested and he wants you to keep in touch with him," Tyson thought about the situation.

"Didn't I just tell you it's not like that. Besides, I was in my room taking a nap after the emotional turmoil I went through with my parents. And I don't want to hear your mouth that he should have walked up the stairs to my room and commit one of your many heinously perverse ideas that lives in your head," Kenny added in when he saw Tyson mouth open. The bluenette immediately closed his mouth, frowning at the brunette.

"My thoughts are not heinous or perverse," Tyson complained.

"So says you," Kenny shot back lightly. "Now let me borrow your cell phone so I can make my call."

"Why should I?" Tyson went back to walking, Kenny following along with his hand stuck out for a long while, even after they were outside of school. Most of all the kids that were attending the school were gone for the day on the school buses. Only one or two buses remained, designated for kids who were in after school clubs. A group of art kids that were hanging around joking with each other sat off to the side on a bench.

"Hey Tyson! What are you still doing around school?" a dark haired boy called over to where Tyson and Kenny were.

"Oh, hey Alan!" Tyson beamed, digging into his pocket to pull out his cell phone. Handing it over to Kenny, Tyson wandered over to the group of art students saying hi to the few he knew before turning back to the dark haired kid who first addressed him. Kenny turned the phone back on, pulling out his planner from the top of his book bag, flipping through it until he came to where he wrote down Kai's home number.

Dialing the number listed, he waited as the line rung approximately three times before someone picked up on the other end. Kenny had a good feeling that this was the same person who previously answered the phone the last time Kenny phoned Kai's place. The slightly high energetic voice made him feel as easy as he had last time talking to Kai's roommate.

"Hi, I was wondering if Mr. Hiwatari is home yet?" Kenny questioned.

"May I ask whose calling?" the person on the other end asked.

"I'm Kenny Shinoda, one of the students from Kai's classes. I think I spoke with you last time when I called." As Kenny expected, when the energetic notes in the male's voice jumped a level higher, it was in fact the same guy who had previously answered the phone.

"You're right, it was me!" the man on the other ended said, Kenny could just imagine a wide smile from the man. He just seemed like one of those people that were always happy no matter what happened. The sort of person that reminded him of Tyson and was easy to get along with. "How are you doing? Kai's not here right now, but maybe I can help you with something."

"Kai's not there…oh, I was just going to return one of his books to him," Kenny replied.

"If you want, I can give you directions to get here, if Kai's not at school still, then he's on his way home. You can come over and give the book to him personally, I'm sure he wouldn't mind."

"I don't want to put you out of your way," Kenny started.

"It's no problem whatsoever. I've told Kai it would be nice to meet you, but you know how Kai is." Tala's voice got really low as he tried to imitate Kai's voice. "Tala, I would bring over company if you didn't run them off. Between you and Bryan, I don't know how I make it through each day."

"Kai really doesn't say that, does he?" Kenny laughed.

"Oh, you haven't been introduced to the real Kai. He's evil," Tala assured. "He will probably be sweet with you around, he doesn't want others to know about his evil tyranny. It will be nice to have company over, so don't feel like you're imposing."

"Well…all right, since you put it that way," Kenny smiled.

"Great! Now I get to meet you!"

_**---------oooo---------**_

Staring up at the house from the sidewalk, Kenny studied the two story brick house with the wide, well manicured lawn containing plants that were just as well kept up. In his head, Kenny made a note to ask Kai whether he enjoyed gardening or was it one of his housemates. The attic window that once was probably glass was sealed up with brick, containing some story of why.

The neighborhood itself was one of the nicest ones in the area in an almost suburbia way with kids playing in lawns or the middle of the street, old couples out for walks with no worries other than what time their soap operas came on, and the occasional radio coming from an open window two or three houses down.

After receiving directions from Tala while at school, Kenny returned Tyson's phone to the bluenette who had volunteered going with Kenny to visit Kai before the brunette reminded Tyson that he needed to go home and study for their English test. The bluenette grumbled whilst they parted ways that Kenny only wanted to be alone with their teacher, only to have Kenny point out that Kai would probably give him more work if he came along. That was enough to rush Tyson home, leaving Kenny to catch the bus to the location of Kai's place.

Kenny walked up onto the porch of the two story brick house, passing a small potted plant sitting on the railing. Knocking on the door, he waited half a minute when the front door opened, a good looking man in his early to mid twenties with a silvery-lavender mixture of hair and eyes popped his head out of the door to look at Kenny. The brunette wondered if this was Tala or maybe the other roommate who lived with Kai.

"May I help you?" Bryan asked the brunette standing on the front porch. Studying the boy who looked like he was in middle school, he noted that give a few years, the youth would be more than just cute, at the point he was at, he was right up Tala's alley when it came to his friend's shota complex.

"Is Tala here…?" Kenny asked, easily distinguishing that the deep, quiet tenor had to make him Kai's other roommate and not Tala, whose voice paled in comparison to the richness of this man's voice. A look of curiosity flickered within the older man's eyes; Kenny pressing on to complete the rest of his statement. "I'm Kenny Shinoda, one of Kai's--Mr. Hiwatari's students. I talked with Tala earlier and received directions here to return a book I borrowed from Mr. Hiwatari."

"So you're one of Kai's students," the fair haired man smiled ever so slightly. "I'm Bryan Kuznetsov, Kai's other roommate."

"It's very nice to meet you," Kenny said politely with a shy smile.

"I'm afraid Kai isn't home just yet, however," Bryan replied.

"I know, I just stopped by to return the book to Mr. Hiwatari," Kenny said.

"Bryan! Whose at the door?" Tala shouted from somewhere within the house. Bryan leaned back into the door to give his housemate a reply.

"One of Kai's students, he's returning a book."

"Let him in!" Tala exclaimed. "Stop being such a shut in old woman and allow this place to have a visitor every now and then. You know all we ever get over are those worried neighbors who give us this long talk about our habits every now and then."

Bryan chuckled ever so slightly, moving to the side to allow Kenny's admission into the house. "I suppose that idiot's right. Come in, don't mind our conversations."

"I'm much obliged," Kenny smiled, walking into the house and looking around at the pleasantly roomy, and spacious house.

The inside was large and fully carpeted with a deep rich plush carpet. The walls were painted in a soothing color that synched with the coloring of the carpet. Bryan led Kenny into the living room once he locked the door.

A strikingly handsome red head with his hair pulled back into a low ponytail tilted his head to the side, his artic blue eyes locked in Kenny. He wasn't anything like Kenny was expecting, and it took the brunette a momentary second for his mind to register the almost geeky voice belonged to the man seated on the couch.

"Um…thank you, Tala…for the directions here," Kenny smiled shyly.

"Dear sweet heaven," Tala breathed, pushing himself from off the couch, striding up to Kenny before circling around the brunette for a long examination. Bryan raised his head up to the ceiling, shaking his head as if this was a regular thing for his housemate to do, however Kenny was slightly unnerved by the action.

"Is something wrong?" Kenny blinked, staring as Tala finally finished his study, only to stop in front of Kenny, getting down on one knee, clasping his hands around one of Kenny's. Blue eyes locked with Kenny's slightly obscured eyes, the artic blue pair serious.

"Please, I'm begging you. Marry me when you graduate," Tala pleaded. "I promise you I will do anything within my power to make you happy."

"Um…what?" Kenny started.

"Just say yes, I promise I will have the money for the ring by the time you graduate. I don't care how many times your parents turn me away, I will continue to ask for your hand in marry until they accept me as their son-in-law," Tala begged.

"Tala, stop scaring our guest." Bryan walked up to Tala, popping his hands off the startled boy. Tala yelped, letting go proceeding Bryan yanking the red head to his feet. Tala protested as Bryan pulled him over to the couch, depositing him onto it. "Now sit there and don't get up until he leaves or you can behave yourself."

"Bryan!" Tala whined, jutting out his bottom lip to pout at his housemate. Tears welled up in the corner of his blue eyes as he gazed at Kenny with puppy dog eyes.

"No, you will stay there," Bryan said firmly to the red head on the couch. "Don't think that look is going to get you sympathy either."

"Um…" Kenny opened his mouth to say something, but the only thing that came out was silence, not knowing how to take the twist of personality.

"Sorry you had to witness that, he can be overbearing when he gets like that," Bryan apologized, turning his attention to the bemused teen. "Kai calls it a shota complex, or something like that. I just call it a reason for him to get arrested."

"A reverse Lolita complex…where he's interested in boys under the age of thirteen?" Kenny questioned. "But…I'm not…"

"He knows," Bryan interrupted.

"I have an advanced shota complex," Tala grinned proudly, regaining his previous composure. "I prefer adorable young men who are under five foot, and you fit my ideal image perfectly, so please say you will marry me."

"You know…I will eventually have a growth spurt. I shall not forever remain such a height that all your dreams and fantasies will be fulfilled," Kenny laughed, despite Tala's weirdness he was very likeable. He was a little insane, but it fit his charm and personality well.

"Shhh…don't say that, you're trying to make me cry," Tala pouted again.

"Someone needs to," Bryan inputted, sitting on the couch, and offering Kenny to take the chair across from the couch. The brunette gratefully took the chair, placing his book bag on the floor beside the chair; at ease with the conversation between the two older men and himself. Tala glared at Bryan, shoving the slightly taller male.

"Shush you…you're always trying to tread on my happiness."

"If being arrested for filming boys secretly at an elementary school is your lines of happiness, please don't let me stop you," Bryan shrugged, unfazed by the shove that didn't even budge him. Turning his eyes on Kenny, the fair eyed man gave the brunette a lazy smile, leaning back in the chair. "Now, as a change of subject, why don't you tell us about yourself. Would you like something to drink?"

"No, I'm fine, thank you for asking," Kenny said.

"Bryan! Can he stay for dinner!" Tala asked, tugging on his housemate's sleeve.

"Why are you asking me?" Bryan raised a brow. "Shouldn't you be asking him?"

"You told me I couldn't get up…" Tala pointed out.

"You know," Bryan started slowly. "You can ask such a simple question without getting touchy feely, my friend. When you're locked away in a jail cell with some hairy seven foot tall truck driver who made his life slashing young hitchhikers, you will appreciate the lessons Kai and I taught you about your habits."

"That's mean," Kenny chuckled as Tala gave his friend a horrified stare, Bryan coolly ignored the look, his eyes back on Kenny. "Besides, I don't want to tread on your hospitality, I should head home soon. I only came by to return the book, but it's been wonderful meeting the both of you. I feel like I've gained two additional friends."

"The feeling is mutual," Bryan admitted. "It would be a real pleasure if you decided you would stay for a little while longer, I hardly find people who I feel as comfortable with immediately as I have you. You hold an air of independency, intelligence, and composure which is so rare in your age group."

"You can tell all that from the few minutes we've conversed?" Kenny tilted his head to the side, there was a lot more to the fair haired man. Kenny suspected if they were to have a serious conversation, he would find Bryan was on level to Kai when it came to discussions.

"I have a habit of psychoanalyzing others when I first meet them, I suppose it's only when I socialize with others that my degree in psychology comes out," Bryan remarked.

"He's not so friendly when it comes to meeting new people," Tala disclosed, having another bipolar moment with his previous composure. "He's usually quiet and won't say a word until he's made up his mind about that person. You've really made an impression off the bat…Bryan just know that you can't have him, I've already called dibs. I don't care what Kai says."

"I'm just going to ban you from speaking," Bryan stated. "Besides, I doubt Kai will accept you staking claim to one of his best students."

"You're a worst tyrant than Kai is," Tala wailed. "Why am I even friends with you?"

"Because no one else will put up with your antics besides myself and Kai," Bryan smirked.

"Kai really does talk about me with the both of you a lot doesn't he?" Kenny inquired, feeling a warm sensation in the pit of his stomach swell with some undistinguished sentiment. He didn't know what about the thought that Kai would mention him with those closest to him, but it gave him hope towards that maybe Kai really did think more of him than just a friend.

"Even when he doesn't think about it, he does," Tala voiced, sitting forward to look at Kenny. His eyes sobered into a serious stare, a tiny grin forming in the corner of his mouth. "You have no idea just how much--"

Tala's sentence is interrupted with the sound of the front door opening, all eyes turning to the living room entrance, a few seconds later the door shut, two pairs of footsteps echoed in the hallway. Tala briefly stared at Kenny, the artic blue eyes flitting mysteriously as he turned his eyes back to the entrance not giving Kenny any time to question what the look was for.

Of course it didn't take Kenny long to realize the concern when Kai entered the living room seconds later, followed by a tall, extremely handsome , wild haired redhead in both a physical and sexual manner by his gait. Kenny never believed someone other than Kai could be that gorgeous, but he was definitely proved wrong.

"Kai, your student came to return your book," Bryan said, standing up.

"Kenny?" Kai blinked, looking at the teen who stood up also, walking over to Kai and holding out the book with a smile which refused to meet his eyes.

"We didn't know you were with Masefield," Tala commented to the red head standing more than a little too close behind Kai.

"We planned to head out for dinner, however Kai insistence we come back here to make sure you two didn't worry about him being out to late. He really has become more responsible since college, I remember when we use to be out all night--"

"Minor present," Bryan interrupted Brooklyn, knowing full well if they knew about Kenny, then Brooklyn sure as hell had found out from Kai towards the brunette. The red head had always made it his business to things which he didn't need to stick his nose in. A trait both admired and loathe depending on the situation, from what Bryan had heard, it made him formidable in a court room.

"Which means none of your kinky sex stories," Tala said. "I think it's time for me to start dinner, Bryan what are you going to do now?"

"I'm heading out," Bryan said, turning his eyes on Kenny and Kai. Kai took the book from the brunette who muttered a few words proceeding to pick up his book bag from the chair. "Kenny would you like a ride home?"

"I don't want to put you out of your way…" Kenny shook his head.

"Nonsense, you're like a little brother to me now," Bryan smiled, ushering the brunette towards the front door.

"I knew about Tala's acceptance, but you also, Bryan?" Kai was shocked Bryan took such an immediate fondness to his student considering Bryan was very standoffish about new people around him. The only people Bryan had ever felt absolutely comfortable from the beginning were the same two people he lived with. Even people Bryan went out with found him reserved about himself and his emotions towards them. This only proved to Kai what a remarkable boy Kenny was to those who met him.

"What can I say, there's just something special about his composure. I'll talk to you later Kai," Bryan waved over his shoulder, grabbing his car keys from the stand in the hallway in passing. Leading from the house to a dark four door sedan Kenny passed on the way up the walkway. Silence spanned between them except for the directions to Kenny's house between them. It was only as Bryan was pulling up to Kenny's house that the still air was stirred.

"Kenny…are you okay?" Bryan tilted his head to the side wondering how the younger was taking the subtle, but obvious news about Kai and Brooklyn.

"Are they…together?" Kenny was impressed his voice was so steady when his heart felt betrayed and lost. He had always thought he was the only one in Kai's heart or even life. Sure he knew there had to be others previous to him, but a bit of youthful optimism allowed him to blind himself to Kai never having anyone else prior.

"That was Brooklyn Masefield, we went to college together," Bryan explained. "It might make you feel better or it might make you feel worst, but they dated for a brief time. What they had…it was minor, you have more of a connection to Kai now, I'm sure of it."

"They seem more like they're together now," Kenny declared.

"That's Brooklyn's charm, he's always had the ability to project what he wants when it comes to…well, you can figure from what you saw of him," Bryan shook his head. Kenny side glanced Bryan, his eyes seeking the one answer he feared to ask.

"They had a very intimate relationship…didn't they? He doesn't seem like the type who wants to sit around watching movies or having a quiet dinner."

"I'm not going to coat it…in fact, they did. I'm not the person you should be asking about all the details from. You should question Kai directly on this if you wish to know everything," Bryan frowned.

"He and I…we're just friends. We're not going out so there's no reason he should tell me anything about who he went out with or if he's rekindled a romance with a former lover," Kenny mumbled, aware his eyes were misting.

"Are you sure you really believe that?" Bryan queried. "Or if you want to. From your reaction, your feelings for Kai are anything but infatuation. Forgive him for not realizing how much he's made you suffer." The brunette said nothing towards the statement. He wasn't ready to face this battle yet, nevertheless be it sooner or later, the young man would have to face up to it.

"No, I'm not sure…but it makes me feel better. Thanks for the lift, Bryan." Kenny got out the car, walking up the steps as the tears came. His first love…and his first heartbreak…life really wasn't fair at times.


	13. Chapter 12

Rim: My continued comments to enjoy continue.

_**---------------oooooo--------------**_

_Chapter 12_

The thud of basketballs hitting the floor sounded through the entire gymnasium, accompanied by sneakers squeaking against the hard polished wooden floors. Occasionally a cheer or shout would ring through the air as someone made a basket. The energy within the gym was vibrant, the students excited about the upcoming summer vacation they would be granted in just three more days. With tests already finished for the day, it was clear sailing from here on out. However for one particular student…

"Kenny, what's wrong with you? Come on, let's have fun, we got through all our tests. I even have a good feeling about Mister Hiwatari's test," Tyson nudged his friend who sat against the wall staring blankly at the action out on the floor. Every now and then his eyes flitted, but otherwise remained obscured. "Hey, come on, what's up with you?"

Tyson huffed, leaning back against the wall with his hands clasped behind his head. He shifted his eyes from his friend with a frown momentarily to where a group of girls were chattering away. Wherever their gym teacher had stashed himself away at was a mystery, nobody minded his absence, taking it as a hint of good fortune.

It was the end of the year for the children, much appreciated by all that they weren't being made to do more practices and runs after all the testing they were made to do. On top of that, Tyson didn't want to have some big showdown between Kenny and their coach towards anything right before vacation. Giving Tyson a sigh of relief that he only needed to focus on disheartened best friend.

"You aren't going to tell me about what's up are you?" Tyson asked once more before falling silent. In the past few days since Kenny went to return their teacher's book to him, the brunette's behavior as became increasingly moody. "Does it have to do with Mister Hiwatari?"

"No," Kenny finally said, closing his eyes. He didn't think even the sound of the man's name would inflict pain into his heart. All he was able to do was tell himself that there was a few more days involved with facing the older man before summer was out. By August maybe he could put this behind him and move on.

Tyson watched his friend subconsciously react to the sound of the man's name.

That had to be it.

A hunch inside Tyson gnawed him, screaming he was right about the older man being involved somehow, if not directly linked to Kenny's behavior. It was possibly the only thing of late which could put his friend into such a dismal disposition, but exactly what happened between him and their English teacher that caused this. Was it something Mister Hiwatari said to Kenny? Did he tell Kenny something towards their relationship?

"Why won't you talk to me about it? You know that no matter what it is, I'll be here for you. We're still friends aren't we?" Tyson replied.

"Yes, we're still friends," Kenny nodded, lowering his head.

"Then why won't you come to me about this? You can lean on me for support."

"I know, Tyson. I thank you for the offer, but I'm fine, really," Kenny assured.

"You look like you lost your best friend, however since I'm sitting right beside you, I'm taking into account that this has nothing to do with me. There's only one thing that I can think of that will put you into such a funk," Tyson sat up, placing a hand on Kenny's shoulder. "Let's skip out on the rest of class and go talk."

"There's nothing to talk about," Kenny said, even as Tyson stood up, pulling him to his feet with ease.

"Like I'm really going to believe that. Kenneth Briareros Shinoda, tell me exactly how long I have known you again to differentiate between you saying you're fine, and actually knowing that you are fine?" Tyson rolled his eyes.

"About as long as you know not to call me by my whole name, Tyson Hideaki Kinomiya," Kenny voiced, throwing his friend an agitated look before it smoothed out, fading into nonexistence. "Believe me when I say I'm fine."

"I'm going to decline and say I'm not going to believe you. Come on, we can have an earlier lunch and talk about what's going on. You might feel better about it." Tyson shook his head at the stubborn boy.

"I'm fine, I'm really fine Tyson," Kenny protested, even as Tyson pushed him to move. Nobody took notice of the two leaving to change clothes in the locker room. The two silently dressed, Tyson keeping his eyes on his friend for any signs of breakage in his composure. Once finished, the two grabbed their English books, notebooks, and journals for the writing assignment they would end up doing for the day.

"Come on, let's go to the library for a while I'm sure there's no one in there now," Tyson said, breaking the silence as they walked down the empty hallway. Kenny didn't reply to the statement, letting his feet follow in step to Tyson's. The bluenette sighed, running a hand through his hair. What could he do to make his friend open up to him. Kenny wasn't the type of person to hold things in to himself, he might at least write it down. "Hey, wrote any stories lately?"

"Stories…? No, I haven't been writing at all," Kenny shook his head.

"None? Not even an idea?" Tyson blinked.

"Nothing. I haven't felt like writing. I think I might quit for a while," Kenny voiced.

"But you like writing," Tyson remarked.

"It got me by." Kenny gave an indifferent shrug to the remark, wishing it was true. As of late, his mind went blank when he tried to write. His feelings were mixed up and scorched from the betrayal of learning that Kai was more than likely back with his old college boyfriend. There was no real reason why Kai should take into consideration his feelings after all. On a standing, they were nothing but friends.

"Writing doesn't just get you by," Tyson objected. "Writing is part of you, like how doing Kendo is part of me, or how Rei does Chinese Kenpo. I certainly don't believe this crap about you giving it up now. If you really hated it, you wouldn't have done it for so long."

The brunette said nothing as they continued down the hall, turning the corner to where the library was. Opening the door for his friend, Tyson pushed Kenny inside. Smiling at the librarian who didn't even look up to greet them, they headed to one of the far corners of the library, sitting down at the long oak table. The table was hidden behind two large racks of magazines in the front and a side panel of books to the left, giving them enough privacy they could call without being spied on.

Turning to see his friend staring at a wall of books from where he sat, Tyson frowned. "All right, enough of this I'm going to make Tyson worry his ass off and not tell him what the hell is the matter thing, okay. Let me in, I might be able to help you."

"I don't need help, I'm fine. Why can't you believe me?" Kenny said exasperatedly.

"I haven't seen you smile in days, you've been increasingly moody. Even people who don't generally notice you have commented about your disposition lately," Tyson said quietly.

"What do I care what they think?" Kenny shrugged.

"That's not the point," Tyson countered. "The point is that this isn't like you. I hate seeing you upset. What are you trying to hide?"

"Nothing," Kenny shook his head. "Can we just drop the subject?"

"I'm right in thinking that Mister Hiwatari is involved? What happened that day you went to go return the book to him? Did he say something to you?" Tyson placed a hand on Kenny's shoulder, retracting it a minute later when he found tears running down the course of his friend's cheeks. "Kenny…"

"Just leave it alone Tyson," Kenny cried softly, rubbing at the offending tears that ran down his cheeks, being reminded that he cried himself to sleep the past few nights coming to the conclusion that it was better to give up his feelings for Kai and move on. They were just friends, he wasn't going to receive anymore out of the relationship, that was obvious the way Kai treated him normal since the incident. He tried avoiding Kai whenever he could just so he wasn't reminded he had no chance for more, and he had been foolish to he conceive there may have been a spark of hope deep down.

"Being strong on your own does no good, it only hurts more," Tyson remarked, wrapping his arms around the brunette, allowing his friend to cry on his shoulder. Tyson remained silent, listening to the quiet sobs that wracked his friend's soul. Eventually the tears subsided, Kenny's breathing slowing to even breaths.

"Tyson…" Kenny whispered, rubbing his eyes once more to rid himself of the last remnants of tears evident on his face.

"Yeah?" Tyson blinked, continuing to stroke his friend's hair. If anyone were to come up and see the two, they might believe there was something between the two by the way Tyson protectively held his friend. Tyson knew rumors of being gay wouldn't bother him with summer just around the corner, and even if summer wasn't a few days ago, the rumors still wouldn't bother him. Kenny's friendship meant more to him than what others might have to say about them being 'hugged up in the library'.

"Am I cute?" Kenny wondered.

"What?" Tyson pulled back, looking at his friend who averted his eyes to the side.

"Am I cute?" Kenny repeated.

"Cute in an attractive way…or cute in a sort of funny way?" Tyson tilted his head to the side.

"You know what I mean."

"No I don't, this has never come up in a conversation between us before. I mean, if you mean in a funny sort of way, you have your moments," Tyson thought.

"I mean…in an attractive way," Kenny flushed.

"Yeah, you've always been cute," Tyson smiled. "Why do you ask now?"

"I guess…I've been thinking what if I'm only cute to him…what if he thinks of me as a cute little brother and not more. Maybe that's why he's been so reserved about me," Kenny voiced. "Maybe if I was more than cute, maybe he would take more notice of me. I feel…insecure, Tyson."

"Why? You're more than just cute, you're intelligent, and witty, and deep down, you're a passionate person. You're one of the most kind people I've ever known," Tyson replied. "If he can't see that…maybe we were wrong and he wasn't worth it."

"I don't think I could ever stack up to the guy he use to go with…he's gorgeous," Kenny sighed dejectedly. "He was with Mister Hiwatari that day I went to return the book. From the way they were together…they might be back together. It's understandable he wants someone his age, and not a kid like me…but it still hurts to think I'm nothing but maybe a cute kid brother to him."

"Ouch," Tyson flinched. "No wonder you've been moody lately, if it was me I would end up locking myself away for the rest of the year. Then again, I would have to find someone who likes me well enough. I've been rejected so many times by now I've grown use to it."

"Maybe you should really just become gay," Kenny stated, pulling away from Tyson. The bluenette pulled a handkerchief from his pocket his grandmother gave him before she died.

"Look up," Tyson said softly.

"Huh?" Kenny blinked, however followed the simple order without thinking about it. He flinched slightly when he felt the satin gently brushing over his eyes, Tyson using his hand to sweep aside the bangs hiding his eyes.

"I don't know why you don't get your hair cut," Tyson shook his head with a small smile. "You know, this summer we're going to make this one of our plans. You have nice eyes, you know, it wouldn't hurt to show them. Maybe he would notice you more. Or we could ask my brother's friend to use a relaxer to straighten out this mass. I bet it's longer than you know."

"Maybe," Kenny shrugged.

"I bet it is," Tyson said, pocketing the handkerchief again once Kenny's face was clean. The bluenette produced a good natured smile Kenny couldn't help but return with just a hint of a blush. "You're feeling better now huh? I say we distract you this summer no matter what. There's a summer carnival that's going to be opening soon downtown. I say you, me, Max, and Rei make a day of it to see what's happening. You know what I say we do today?"

"No," Kenny shook his head.

"I say we ditch the rest of the day. There's no point in forcing yourself to stare at Mister Hiwatari after lunch only to be reminded that he…you know. I can call up my brother to come sign us out and we hang out at Southpoint or Northgate. I heard they finally finished the expansion they were doing," Tyson grinned.

"I don't think it's a good idea to ditch school," Kenny begun.

"Live once in a while. Why force yourself to go after telling me this? I might not always be responsible about things, but you're my best friend. I don't want to see you hurt like this." Tyson stared Kenny in the eyes with a serious stare. "It pisses me off, even though he probably didn't mean it."

"You sound like a jealous boyfriend," Kenny chuckled a little.

"When it comes to your heart, I guess I am," Tyson leaned forward, resting his forehead against Kenny's, still looking him in the eyes. "Through thick and thin I will remain at your side protecting you whenever I can. That's all I can do for you."

"Thank you Tyson…for always being there for me," Kenny said, wrapping his arms around his best friend.

"So how about we ditch out of here and head to the mall," Tyson replied, ruffling the mass of silky brown hair belonging to his friend.

"I'm not going to be able to talk you out of it otherwise am I?" Kenny inquired.

"Nope, once I've set my mind to something, I'm sticking to it. And if that means keeping you from going into depression, well it's a sacrifice I will happily take. Come on, we can use the payphone in the student lounge," Tyson said, detaching himself from his friend and standing up. With Tyson's resolve to ditch out on the rest of the day firmly planted into the ground, Kenny didn't protest further. He had to admit that he was not up for spending an hour and a half staring at the same person who broke his heart, especially after the hour's crying spell. All he really wanted to do was go home and face Kai never again until his heart was whole again.

Passing the librarian who briefly looked up at them to tell them to get to class, the two headed down the hall towards where the student lounge was. Tyson glanced down at his watch, seeing they had more than fifteen minutes before class let out for lunch. Around this time of day, his brother was probably just turning over in bed, considering the lazy slacker never had Tuesday classes.

Shifting his eyes to Kenny, he studied the sad face wondering how could he bring his friend's smile back to him. What exactly could he say that would make him forget about his lost love? Guilt stung Tyson, remembering it was he that brought Kenny's affections to light with the older man. If he hadn't pushed the issue into light, Kenny probably would never know about the person Kai was with. Nor would he have hoped for more from the man.

"Hey…Kenny--" Tyson begun until his sentence was interrupted.

"Tyson, Kenny, what are you two doing walking around?" Both boys froze, turning to find Kai walking towards them with a slight frown on his face. "Aren't you suppose to be in class?"

"We received permission to leave early, Kenny's not feeling well, so we were going to the student lounge to let him sit there for a while hoping he feels better," Tyson lied. Kai's eyes roamed to Kenny who refused to look at him, concern arising.

"Kenny, do you think you need to call your parents?" Kai inquired taking a step towards the younger boy. Kenny shook his head, his eyes remaining on the floor. "Kenny?"

"I'll be fine, don't worry about me," Kenny mumbled.

"You don't have a class this period, Mister Hiwatari?" Tyson questioned, changing the subject.

"Huh? No, I don't," Kai blinked, but his mind still remained on the brunette who had seemed to be avoiding him the past few days. He had no clue why, and between worrying about Brooklyn making passes at him and wrapping up the last few days of school without incident with Brooklyn and Michael, he had no time to properly sit down and go over the subject in his head as to why. "I was heading to the teacher's lounge…a friend brought me lunch."

"Is it the red head from the other day?" Kenny questioned, hoping maybe he was wrong. That maybe it was Tala or Bryan.

"Brooklyn?" Kai asked.

"Yes, is he the friend who brought you lunch?" Kenny nodded.

"Yes, he is. He can be a hassle to deal with at times, despite that he has his good points," Kai smiled slightly. "I'm sure he can wait a few minutes for me. My first priority is being a teacher after all."

"Don't worry about me, I'll be fine." Resisting the urge to let the tears fall, Kenny turned from Tyson and Kai, making his way down the hall as fast as his legs could carry him. Tyson cursed silently, turning his eyes on his teacher who was puzzled to the change in his student. Even if it was unintentional, Tyson could not let this man continued to hurt Kenny.

"Mister Hiwatari," Tyson remarked, breaking the awkward silence hanging between them, left by Kenny's retreat. The older man looked down at his other student with a puzzled, slightly bemused stare, finding the boy narrowing his eyes up at him. "I don't know if you realize it or not, but that was the dumbest thing you could have ever said."

"I--" Kai started.

"It might have been a mistake on my part, but I thought…" Tyson interrupted, shaking his head. "You have no idea what you're putting him through. Figure it out before it's too late. It's not in my habit to help someone whose upset him like this, so consider it a bit of helpful advice because next time I'm not going to say anything at all." Taking off after Kenny, Tyson left Kai standing there in the hallway wondering what in all hell really was going on.


	14. Chapter 13

Rim: All right, the last new chapter, and the brand new chapter for you and B., Chao. I hope everyone enjoys the hard work I've put into this latest chapter in the past few days, I even had to give up playing my BL dating sim to get this finished. Well...I guess it's well worth the time. This chapter is the turning point that I've been trying to get at since the beginning of the story. I hope everyone really enjoys.

_**------------oooooo--------------**_

_Chapter 13_

Staring around the classroom for the last time until school started back in August Kai released a weary sigh of relief that he had again made it through another year with his nerves completely intact. Or rather, with most of his nerves completely intact, had the set of events currently playing in his life had not decided to fray what sense he was able to obtain whilst dealing with his disturbed best friends/roommates. This year he was really planning to get away from them for a couple of weeks and spend some quality time by himself, perhaps on a small trip to the beach or visiting his aunt who lived in Japan. At least there he would get a chance to figure out what he was going to do about the mess he was enfolded within.

Moving away from the desk, Kai headed out the classroom door, shutting it behind him. Most of the other teachers had already left for the start of their vacations, however, a few-like Kai-remained to straighten out last minute chores or tasks before going on their much needed break. Turning in the direction of the exit which would lead him towards the teachers' parking lot, the sound of quick heels on the polished floor made him turn his attention towards the sound, then groan inwardly, finding Hilary Asakura making her way to him.

Knowing it was already too late to pretend he stopped for another reason, he put on his best smile as the woman reached his side. Not noticing the grimace of annoyance underlining the smile a normal person looking in from the outside would easily pick up, Hilary smiled up at the taller.

"You're in a good mood Mister Hiwatari," Hilary said, eyeing him, producing an even wider smile on her painted light pink lips.

"How can I not be? It's the end of another school year, and I have not been driven insane by my muddle headed students, if you don't mind my saying," Kai said.

"I suppose that they aren't like when we were growing up," Hilary giggled. "Do you mind if I walk you out to the parking lot?"

"Not at all," Kai said, cursing his good manners to tell the lady he would rather leave alone and enjoy the last few moments he were still at this school until August in peace. Inwardly sighing, knowing that the older woman only meant well, he began leading her towards the teacher's exit.

"It must be a relief for you to have a break from Mister Parker, and the rest of the school," Hilary commented, looking up at him. So, this had interior motives after all to safeguard that Michael was not going to ambush Kai on his way home. If the woman wasn't such a mother hen who felt it had to be her job to fix every situation that occurred for other people, he might have appreciated the gesture more than he did. However, a slight tension throbbed in his temples with irritation. He did not need a bodyguard and was fully capable of handling Michael on his own if the red head were to approach him now. Knowing that if he were to tell this to the woman, she would only fret more and insist to allow her to be of use in this situation, leading to further aches within his cranium.

"I suppose it would be if Mister Parker was bothering me," Kai countered to let the woman know at least subtly that there really wasn't a need to be involved. "Mister Parker has found other things to occupy himself with."

"What other things?" the woman asked worried.

"He had not let me know Miss Asakura, what those things are. I assume you will have to ask him yourself if you want to know what they are," Kai replied coolly. There was no way he was going to tell her that it was because of his ex boyfriend that caused Michael to back off and stop harassing him with becoming lovers or at least a one night stand.

"I suppose I will have to in order for next school year to start off without a stitch." Changing the subject with a shake of her head, she looked back up to Kai with a warm smile, or rather a familiar smile he was weary of: the smile of a woman interested in him. Could it be that her motives for hounding Michael to backing off was because she wanted Kai herself? Not that this wouldn't be the first time it's happened to him, but this was certainly a more annoying situation than beforehand. "So, do you have any plans for the summer, Kai?"

"I was planning to visit some relatives to get away from my friends, but that plan isn't decided just yet," Kai thought.

"There happens to be a series of plays going on in downtown Chapel Hill beginning in two weeks, me and some of my friends thought you might enjoy it since you're such an English major," Hilary suggested. "If you don't decide to leave town, you should call me up and we can have an outing there to see a play."

"I thank you for the offer," Kai smiled as he opened the door for the woman who thanked him and walked out into the already ninety-eight degree day. Kai exited the door. "I will take it in mind if I do decide to spend the summer here instead of leaving." The response seemed to excite the older woman as she grinned even wider at him.

"Some of my friends would love it, they've seen you around and they're always asking me to invite you out, I'm sure you get this a lot, Kai, but you stand out from other men. You're well dressed, well mannered, and you're polite to everyone, you don't seem to have any flaws at all," Hilary blushed as moved a little closer to Kai.

"Everyone has flaws Miss Asakura," Kai stated. "I just try my best to not let them get in the way of teaching my students."

"You're such a caring person to be so young. I remember when I was your age the young male teachers I worked with were inconsiderate of their students. They held it over their students' heads about who was obviously smarter in the classroom so the kids had no right to question them. I can never forget that was a horrible first year. But teachers like you have come along and made things here better, it's always an honor to work with you," Hilary chattered.

"It's nice to work with everyone here also."

"No, I'm serious Kai! You are nice to everyone and you don't treat anyone with malice. You don't make comments to the female staff, and I know many of the older teachers here aren't threatened by you, or talk about you behind your back. I'll be shocked if you don't have a girlfriend," Hilary said with a definite nod.

"I suppose I'm not ready for a relationship with anyone at the moment. The last one I was in ended on a bad foot and I'm not ready to take another step forward until I know exactly what I want," Kai thought.

"You're going to make someone a happy woman when you finally put it out there you're single and looking. You have no idea how many women would kill to have a nice man like you who is mature enough to have a serious relationship with honest loyalty and commitment," Hilary exclaimed. Looking down at her watch, the woman looked back up at Kai with an apologetic expression for having to cut their conversation short even though he didn't mind one bit. "I'm sorry I can't stay and chat more. I promised my friends I would meet them up later, and I want to get home to straighten things up before living to meet them. Don't forget, if you plan to stay in town to call me, Mister Hiwatari."

"All right," Kai nodded though he had no plans of doing any such thing. It was enough to have his grandfather throwing every available girl at him to turn him straight, but he didn't need women from his job to start flinging themselves at him too. His sanity could only withstand so much torment. Watching the woman run off to her car, he let out a sigh, waving as she turned back to wave at him. Once she was in her car and driving away, he was finally allowed to head towards his car, nevertheless God decided to throw him another little curve ball as he found Brooklyn waiting for him.

_**---------oooo---------**_

Kenny watched Max push Tyson from the arcade machine's driving seat, causing Tyson's car to crash into a tree and catch on fire. Max cackled like a mad man as he put his hands back on his own steering wheel to drive pass the burning wreckage and claim victory. Getting up from his seat, Max cheered as some people forgot about their own games and turned to stare at the two. Rei ignored the two, continuing to play X-Men versus Street Fighter with a ten year old kid who had been taunting Rei for a while, but was now being shut up as Rei handed the kid his ass in the second round of the match.

"You cheater!" Tyson growled, climbing up from the floor to glare at Max who continued to cheer at his victory over Tyson after a forty-five minute losing streak. "Just because you can't drive a straight line, that doesn't mean you sabotage my game!"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Max said innocently, looking over at Kenny who only seemed to stare through him, his thoughts somewhere else. "Kenny, did you see me do anything remotely close to cheating to win that game against Tyson?"

"You two keep it down so we don't end up getting thrown out of this place," Rei advised, pulling out a devastating special finisher with Wolverine and Ryu, depleting the kid's life bar, and rendering Rei the winner of the match. Pushing away from the joystick pad, Rei smirked at the kid. "I see you have nothing else to say do you, kid?"

"Rei, don't you think it's cruel to bash the kid's head in like that," Tyson comment as the kid ran off with nothing to say. "The minute he comes back with some seven foot tall, five hundred seventy pound older brother, I'm going to have to claim I don't know you, and run for my life."

"Hey, the kid should have been able to back up his words if he was going to trash talk my play style. You know when it comes to my combinations, I'm merciless, even to a kid," Rei commented, as he hit the button to go back to playing the computer. Cracking his knuckles, he readied for the machine.

"Speaking of merciless…" Tyson glared at Max who whistled his innocence, rocking on the heels of his feet. Pointing an accusing finger at Max, he continued to glower at the blonde. "Don't pretend to act innocent after playing dirty! I want a rematch now."

"I don't know what you're talking about," Max said. "I think the summer heat has gone to your brain already. You're hallucinating, Tyson. Isn't that right Kenny?" The brunette gave his friend no response, his mind still deeply wrapped in thoughts about his English teacher. He really wished he could just forget about the older man, and move no with his life. It seemed like no matter what he did, it reminded him of Kai to no end, nagging at him that his teacher was probably spending his time with the former boyfriend and still had no clue that he was further breaking Kenny's heart by doing so.

Kenny wished he had the balls to walk up to Kai and speak his mind. Despite the words he had always been able to write down on paper, when it came to an actual situation like this he supposed that he was more of an awkward teen than he realized. His mind would always go back to the moments were it seemed his teacher felt more for him than admiration for a brilliant mind. Where had things gone so wrong between them that Kai could not understand that the amount of time they shared, no matter the length of time between known infatuations, to now when it seemed there were no longer feelings? Where was the common understandings Kenny's heart beat only for his teacher? That it was Kai who gave him a reason for writing that gave him strength to go forward.

Sinking deeper into depression, he was unaware of Max waving a hand in front of him, until Tyson's face popped up directly in front of him to push his hair to the side and stare into his eyes. The dark blue eyes wavered with apprehension at this state of depression befalling his friend.

"You in there buddy?" Tyson said softly, moving his hand to allow the hair to fall back into Kenny's eyes. Kenny blinked, titling his head up to stare at Tyson. Blinking a few more times, he realized that both Rei and Max had abandoned their games and were now surrounding him with concerned expressions.

"Kenny…are you okay?" Rei questioned.

"If you don't feel well, maybe you should head home. Do you need someone to walk home with you?" Max wondered, biting his bottom lip nervously.

"I'm fine," Kenny replied quietly.

"This isn't fine," Max said. "I've never seen you look like this before since meeting you. Nothing ever gets you down. What's up? You know we're all friends here, so you can talk to us about anything."

"I'm fine, really Max you don't have to worry about me." Kenny tried to produce a genuine smile that showed he was fine, however the smile only made it to the corners of his mouth, the weak smile failing after only seconds of being produced. He supposed this was even more reason for them to be worried about him for his peculiar behavior. It was true that he never got depressed with them over small insignificant things others tended to angst about. To them, he was the level headed mature one who kept his cool and never allowed lost his head because of the minor things. This side of him was unfamiliar to Max and Rei.

"When you look like you've lost your best friend, we can't help but worry about you," Max said. "For what it's worth, I'm sure that what's ever got you down isn't as serious as it might be. We all have something that we fret over, but in the end, when it's over and you look back over it, you think about how silly you were for worrying so much over it."

"Perhaps this is such a case where my feelings are fretting over something that is beyond my control and it would do me better to forget about it…if I could remove all thoughts of it from my mind," Kenny replied, pushing himself from leaning against the wall. "Perhaps I should take some time in getting rid of the problem."

"Do you really think it's going to be that easy?" Tyson frowned, reaching out to tug on Kenny's shirt. Turning a grin to Max and Rei, he began pulling Kenny towards the exit of the arcade, back into the mall. "Can you guys excuse us for a few minutes? I want to talk some sense into his head for him."

"Huh…um…sure," Rei blinked, watching Tyson drag Kenny away. When the two were outside the arcade, Rei tilted his head to the side, staring at Max who gave him an amused smile which Rei could only return. "Sometimes, don't you get the feeling that the two of them could be more than friends by the way Tyson tends to protect Kenny?"

"Or at least have a crush on him, given they've been friends since back in the day," Max answered, linking his fingers behind his head. "I think they would make a strange couple if they ever went out with each other. Do you think it might happen?"

"I say if they don't get together by college, I will be surprised," Rei answered honestly.

"I agree," Max nodded.

In the meantime, Tyson sneezed once again, rubbing his nose. Kenny reached into his pocket, pulling out a travel pack of tissue and handing it to Tyson. "Thanks. I think those two are talking about me," Tyson remarked, taking a tissue and blowing his nose. Balling up the used piece of paper, he threw it into a nearby trashcan.

"When you drag me off like this, it's hard to not consider we're a little more than friends at time," Kenny voiced, being pushed down on a wooden beach. Tyson flopped down beside him. "So why did you lug me off?"

"I know you can't forget about him that easily, but do you really want to throw it all away without a fight?" Tyson wondered. "I know how much you've liked him since he first started working at our school. I know you didn't fall in love with him just because he was attractive, you found things over time to like about him. First loves are always the most important ones, you know. If you give up your first love so easily, you may end up giving up others that easily too."

"What if this first love was never meant to be?" Kenny questioned.

"If it was never meant to happen, it wouldn't have. You would be enjoying summer with us instead of being emo because of some hot ex-boyfriend who may or may not be back in Mister Hiwatari's life. You should have a little more confidence in yourself Kenny. If it bothers you so much, go to his house and tell him exactly what's eating at you. I know I may snap at him again for being dense towards your feelings."

"My confidence lags when it comes to him," Kenny sighed.

"You can say that again," Tyson replied, mimicking the action. "Maybe I should have left it all alone in the first place. It's kind of my fault that you're in this situation as it is. But I was tired of you keeping your feelings to yourself…I only wanted to help you be happy if he turned your feelings." Tyson stared down at his shoes in study.

"I was vexed at first, but I'm glad you did it. I might never have had so many chances to get to know him better otherwise," Kenny smiled. "You're probably right, if it wasn't meant to happen, it wouldn't have happened, and we would be passing strangers. I like that I've had fun spending time with him."

"You should tell him that then," Tyson urged. "Let him know how you really feel. Only that way will you be able to come to a crossroads about everything."

"Not now," Kenny said, shaking his head.

"Why not? Now is a better time than ever! School's out for teachers and there's no one to interfere. If you see the ex-boyfriend, you tell him to back off because he's had his chance with Mister Hiwatari, now he needs to stop being greedy and give someone a chance at being happy," Tyson asserted.

"You really are uncouth at times, Tyson," Kenny chuckled slightly. Looking over at his friend with a smile, he nodded his head. "But things like that make me feel better, and give me strength to place my heart forward. I promise I'll go to his house tomorrow and tell him. Today I'll figure out my words."

"That sounds like a plan, I was wondering what we would have to do to snap you out of this," Tyson grinned, ruffling Kenny's hair. "My other plans didn't work after all."

"Thanks for trying though, Tyson. I'm grateful."

"You don't have to thank me. What are friends for?"

_**----------oooo----------**_

Kai took a deep breath before making his way towards Brooklyn. Maybe things won't escalate into yet another one of Brooklyn's scenes…or so Kai could only pray as he made it to where the wily red head was waiting for him. Giving the lawyer a cool look, Kai tried to neutralize any emotions which Brooklyn might pick up on. "Good afternoon Brooklyn, might I ask why you're hanging around my car?" Raising a brow slightly, Kai continued. "Stalking me now?"

"What purpose would I need to stalk you for?" Brooklyn inquired.

"Very good question, so what do I owe to this visit, besides knowing you came for another request that involves us going somewhere together," Kai voiced.

"You know me well," Brooklyn chuckled, the sound like silk against bare skin. Kai tried to ignore it, but he knew Brooklyn was applying it for the very reason of getting a response out of Kai.

"Well, we did go together for a brief period of time," Kai reminded.

"It was the best period of time in my life," Brooklyn winked, Kai flushed slightly at the comment.

'_Damn it, why can't I just get in my car and drive off?_' Kai grumbled mentally. Now that Brooklyn was able to get a response, he wasn't going to let up on his attack until Kai gave in. As if he was able to read Kai's inner mind, Brooklyn gave Kai a playful smile before speaking once again.

"Summer break for you has finally begun, how about we go out and have a few drinks, Kai?" Brooklyn inquired, leaning against the hood of the car. A sensual smile lifted each end of Brooklyn's mouth. Kai's body tightened in reaction to that smile, remembering when Brooklyn would smile at him like that after hours of sex, only to draw Kai into another few hours of debauchery.

Shifting his eyes away, Kai pretended to not notice the lewd smile, however he knew that Brooklyn very well could sense his tactics were hitting mark with each remark he made. Settling the fluttering deep in his stomach, Kai looked straight back at Brooklyn; pass that smile exuding his sensual nature. "Maybe another time Brooklyn, I would rather like to get home and spend the rest of the day relaxing."

"No fair," Brooklyn pouted mockingly, tilting his head to the side with the look of child trying to wheedle something from an adult. "You've been declining all my advances, and now when I finally have a chance to move in, you try running. What harm will a few drinks do?"

Kai had heard that line before the end result was him being unable to walk for half a day due to the drunk, rough sex between them. He learned his lesson thus after not to trust such words from the red head. With a light shake of his head, Kai went for the driver's side door of his car. Brooklyn pushed himself away from the car, walking over to place his hand over Kai's leaning in so that his breath tickled Kai's throat. The dual haired teacher looked up at his former boyfriend. "Brooklyn…"

"When you resist me like this, it makes me want to push you even harder until you give in to me. That's what I always loved about you, Kai. No matter how much you tried to resist, I could make you give in. It's such a turn on," Brooklyn murmured hotly into Kai's ear, his lips skimming the contour of it barely, but it was enough that he heard the intake of breath from his former lover. "Even that makes me want to take you home right now and make you moan my name to God himself."

"Brooklyn…stop," Kai gasped softly, pulling away from the red head. Brooklyn did not pursue him further, he only grinned at the soft blush staining Kai's cheeks adorably. Kai really was unintentionally cute when he had no idea. It was really enough to make Brooklyn take him where he stood.

"Hey Kai!!" The mood between the two broke as Tala ran up to Kai waving a piece of paper in his hand with a huge smile on his face, causing him to look like the Cheshire cat. Tala skidded to a stop when he saw Brooklyn, his eyes sobered as he gave Kai a once over, then Brooklyn. "Oh…Masefield, don't tell me you're stalking him at work now."

"Ivanov, it's nice to see you too," Brooklyn said, giving the other red head a curt nod.

"I'm sure," Tala rolled his eyes. "I would believe those words if you didn't look agitated I interrupted your little plans to pull Kai into the nearest unlocked car you can find, strip him clean of all his clothes and go for ever position known to man that's possible in the driver's seat. So, how about we ignore pleasantries?"

"You make me sound as if I don't care about anything but Kai," Brooklyn commented crossing his arms over his chest, giving Tala a leveled look which the other red head returned without faltering.

"Well, how can I put it," Tala thought, taking the keys from Kai and unlocking the door to the car. "Duh, why else would Kai look like he's going to bolt the minute you take a step towards him. Well, now that I'm here, I think I'll interrupt your scheming, I need to borrow him, so how about you pick this up at another time?"

"You leave me no choice, Ivanov," Brooklyn said, a short smile rising to his lips. "Kai, we shall continue this at another time, I want to you consider that you're not completely over me, and that it's in both of our interest to figure out just how long you want to run around before giving in."

"Yes, yes, now that you've spoken shoo." Tala made a motion with his hand for Brooklyn to leave, the other red head laughing slightly as he complied this time with Tala's request. Tala watched as Brooklyn walked over to a tangerine Mazda rx7, getting into the car, and driving away with a screech of tires burning on the asphalt. When Brooklyn was gone, Tala scowled a little, turning his eyes to Kai. "He really is full of himself as being a sex god, isn't it?"

"Tala…"

"Hm? Don't tell me that people actually buy that sort of act. The guy is unbelievable," Tala blinked, shaking his head. "Sometimes I swear you're dense, my friend."

"Thanks, for showing up when you did," Kai sighed, interrupting his friend.

"You don't have to thank me," Tala grinned. "Let's go home."

"How did you get here in the first place?" Kai questioned, realizing that he didn't see Bryan in tow as usual with the car.

"Caught the bus like any normal person would," Tala smiled, climbing into the driver's side of the car and motioning for Kai to get in on the passenger side. Not really bothering to argue, Kai complied. "Bryan has the car. He's going hunting for a victim to hook up with for the night."

"And you didn't want to go with him?" Tala gave Kai a droll glance as he closed the car door and started the car. Putting on his seat belt, Kai laughed remembering the last time the two of them had gone out together hunting for dates. Bryan had come home dragging in a very intoxicated Tala who-from what Kai heard for the next two months-showed his ass, thus embarrassing Bryan who no longer went to that specific bar any longer.

"I thought you remembered, we said it was a bad idea for me to go hunting with him again because he likes to feed liquor down my throat to keep me quiet which is why I still ended up embarrassing him," Tala remarked, taking the car out of park. Shifting into drive, the red head maneuvered the car out of the parking lot.

"I almost forgot," Kai smiled. "So, why are you here anyway?"

"Oh yeah!" Tala chimed, moving his hand from the wheel as he held up the piece of paper he still clenched to. Taking his eyes from safely steering into traffic, Tala gave Kai a giant grin. Kai didn't know whether to be more fearful of his friend's lack of need to watch where he was going, or the piece of paper he was holding up with such a perverse grin, Kai decided to take his chances with the paper if only to get his friend to watch where he was driving. "If you aren't planning to do anything for summer, you should get a job!"

"I don't need a job for the summer, I'll still get paid during the time I'm not working," Kai frowned, looking over the paper before sighing and tossing it to the backseat. "And I'm especially not taking a summer job tutoring elementary school teacher who are getting ready to go to middle school, just so you can visit and pick out which ones you are going to have fantasies about when they get older."

"That's not fair! I would do it myself if I had a degree and experience in that field," Tala pouted, slumping into the driver's seat.

"Put on your seat belt before we get a ticket," Kai instructed.

"Yeah, yeah," Tala nodded, doing as told as he swung the car around a car doing twenty in a thirty-five zone. "You just like to ruin my fun. First with the little muffin now with not taking this summer job which serves great opportunities. Why are we best friends again if you don't like helping me out?"

"That's a good question, the minute I find that out I will let you know. First of all, that job is only prospective for you and not me. Secondly, how many times do I have to tell you not to give my students heinous pet names as such? His name is Kenny, if you can not say it, then I'm going to refrain from letting you speak at all," Kai scolded.

"Sorry mother," Tala chimed. "Tala promises that he'll keep all his hot thoughts to himself so you don't have to scold him anymore."

"Idiot," Kai shook his head.

"Speaking of students how is he anyway? After you brought Brooklyn home with you, crushing the boy's poor heart, Bryan and I have been worried about him. We've kept quiet about it since you've been busy with the last few days of school." Tala's expression sobered as he side-glanced Kai. Bemused, Kai was brought back to his earlier reflections about the events surrounding him; one of those recollections having to do with Kenny's strange behavior over the course of the days leading up to school ending.

Noting the change of expression, Tala shook his head. "Let me guess, he avoided talking to you as much as he could, making eye contact with you, he was withdrawn, always said there was nothing wrong with him when you inquired then excused himself from conversation with you?"

"How—?" Kai began.

"Did I know that?" Tala finished off the sentence. "You really are a dunce for someone with an English degree. Haven't you used that brain in your damn head to decipher those are classic signs of heartbreak?"

"Heartbreak? What does he have to be heartbroken over?" Kai asked honestly, at a lost to what Tala was getting at.

"I guess I'm going to have to take into account that Brooklyn probably screwed all the common sense out of your head a long time ago. No wonder you stopped dating after him and ended up with a few one night stands. Let's work this problem out together, Kai. We have Kenny, who if I'm not mistaken was infatuated with you, we bring in the ex boyfriend who made it clear he wants you, the young man who is infatuated with you learns about the ex boyfriend. Are you following me so far?" Tala glanced over at Kai who seemed to be trying to process things.

"I still don't get it."

"Right, so we go to the second part of the situation now that we've brought in the pieces. The ex and the boy who has a crush on you meet. The ex boyfriend makes it seem from the way he spoke that you two were together, seeing the infatuated boy as a rival, so he decides to bump him out of the running in order to have you all to himself. The result is the kid's current behavior. Is any of this making sense to you yet Kai?" Tala stopped at a red light, turning his eyes on Kai.

"Kenny thinks of me as someone he can come to and talk with…I'm sure he no longer has feelings for me," Kai said.

"Oh really? Then why has he been acting so strange if he doesn't have feelings for you? Wake up Kai, the kid still likes you. He might not express it, but I'm certain he wants you to realize it and take him seriously. You thought it would pass in the beginning it obviously hasn't by the sounds of it. And before you say 'he's a minor' will you stop to ask yourself when has a heart ever cared about age? Bryan and I know you like him. Anyone with two eyes can see you enjoy having him around. He's bright, challenging, a cute kid who's only going to become more attractive as he grows up, he's what you've always wanted in a partner," Tala voiced.

"He's a minor," Kai protested.

"You're a broken record. He has two more years of school, right? You don't need to have sex with him, you can hold out on kissing if you want to be such a monk, but an 'I love you' means more than any of that right now. Just talking with you and being near you is enough for him I think," Tala smiled as the light changed to green. "So tell me, what are you afraid of?"

"I'm not afraid," Kai assured, looking out the window of the car. "I don't want to get in the way of his dreams. He has his life ahead of him, I would regret if he strayed from finding his own path because of my selfish needs." To the response, Tala snorted.

"What are you a martyr? You're far from a saint either buddy," Tala cackled, swinging the car around a bunch of teenage girls who eyed him and Kai in passing. Tala paid no attention as he turned left onto a one way street. "You're more like a demon trying to be an angel."

"Shut up," Kai glowered at his friend, who flipped on the radio, turning the dial until he found G-105. The red head bobbed his head to a song from _A Perfect Circle_, as he swung the car to the right down another street which led back into traffic. "You're one to talk."

"I never said I was perfect," Tala sang song, his moods switching once again.

"You can say that again," Kai huffed.

"At least I'm happy with myself. You won't even allow yourself a bit of happiness. Who says your locked away feelings are one sided? How do you know that he doesn't feel the same way for you?" Tala questioned. "You know, there's only one way to find out."

"I'm going to regret this aren't I?" Kai said giving in to the fact there was no way his manic friend was going to let him get around facing up to Kenny.

"Good you've stopped being such a coward, I worried I might have to really steal him from under your nose," Tala beamed.

"Not a chance of that happening in this lifetime or the next," Kai assured, coming to terms with a realization there was no other way out of it. Maybe this was a signal of psychotic intervention…whatever it was, he would know soon enough.

"All right then, so let's head to our destination now that it's been decided!"

_**-----------oooo-----------**_

The sound of knocking on the door jarred Kenny back to a sense of reality as his eyes left the movie playing on the TV. Blinking a few times to make sure that it was not an action of the movie, he asserted there was indeed a knock on the door. Sliding from the couch, Kenny padded from the living room to the hallway entrance. Another knock sounded as he reached for the knob, unlocking it then pulling the door open. His mouth nearly dropped open finding Kai standing on his front porch.

"Kai…" He knew it came out a whisper, yet somehow the older man still heard it, and smiled down at him softly.

"I was wondering if I might speak with you for a few minutes, if you have time," Kai wondered.

"I…" Kenny's mouth went dry hearing those words. His heart-he was sure Kai could hear-raged in his chest, threatening to make its way through his ribcage at the force of their beats. His courage fleeted at those serious wine colored eyes that pinned him to where he stood; his body buckling in fear of whatever Kai wished to converse on.

"It's really important, but I also understand if you don't wish to speak to me," Kai responded at the obvious fear swarming around the young teen. Sliding his hand under Kenny's chin, he crooked the boy's head up with a nudge as the hair fell from the boy's eyes, allowing Kai to see the fear there. "I'm not going to push you or impose. I do wish to apologize for not realizing how much you've suffered whilst I've blinded myself from the obvious."

"Kai…" Why couldn't he form the words that were on the tip of his tongue as Kai moved his hand from under his chin, turning away to walk back down the porch steps. Tears welled up in his eyes, blurring his vision of the man who was about to leave. Reaching out his hand, he forced his legs to move, lunging forward to grab the back of Kai's shirt. "Wait! Don't go…please."

Stopping, Kai tilted his head back at the boy clinging to him, tears streaking down his cheeks. Reaching back, Kai wiped away Kenny's tears with his thumb. "Don't cry…I told you I could never bear to see that from you."

"I've…I've wanted to talk to you too," Kenny said. "Today…I came to a decision to speak with you. I don't have the courage to go through with it if you leave now."

"Then let's speak in privacy," Kai indicated to the open front door, leading his young student towards it. Kenny willingly went along, his head buzzing with a million and one thoughts to what should he say, what shouldn't he say, or how should he act in front of this man. Kai exhaled mentally at the lost expression in the boy's face. How could he have been so blind in not seeing it himself? Once inside the house, Kai closed the door, turning Kenny to face him. "Are your parents home?"

"Huh?" Unintentionally, a soft blush lit up the boy's face.

"For the case of privacy in talking about the matters which we both need to discuss," Kai said. "We don't want to be overheard."

"They're in their studies…but they're doing research. They won't be out for hours," Kenny bit his lip nervously. He paused in speaking momentarily before rushing the next few words along, as if the response he had given was going to deter Kai from the discussion between them. "But both of their studies are upstairs. They would have to come down the stairs and we would hear them coming before they got to the living room…it's really okay, we can talk in the living room without worrying."

"I shall trust your words then," Kai said, leading the boy into the living room where he discovered _2001: A Space Odyssey_ playing on the screen. Kenny went over and turned the TV off, motioning shyly for Kai to sit on the couch. Taking the offer, Kai patted the area to his right for the young man to seat himself. For a long minute, Kenny stayed rooted to the spot, staring at Kai as if he might bolt from the room at any given moment. "It's okay, there's no reason to be afraid."

"I know…but my heart continues to hammer at my ribcage nonetheless…" Kenny voiced. "You don't mind if I just stand here…if I move my legs might not work right."

"Whatever makes you most comfortable," Kai smiled. Silence settled between them, both gathering and sorting out thoughts to go over, nevertheless, it was Kenny who initiated the conversation.

"Kai…can you…can you tell me about him?" Kenny looked down at the floor, the color in his face only brightening. "I know it's not my business…I just—"

"Brooklyn and I met in college, we were in the same Physics class," Kai recalled. "He had been interested in the whole semester. He wasted no time letting me know that he wanted to be with me. There was so much physical attraction I was naïve thinking he was someone I could have a relationship with."

"Why did you break up? You two fit well together…he even seems to want you back now."

"There was nothing there," Kai shook his head. At this, Kenny looked up seeing the regret deep in Kai's eyes thinking about his ex boyfriend. "Physical attraction is not a substitute for security. I acknowledged this one morning after waking up from a night of meaningless sex with him. We had no connection other than the need for sex. I wanted more than that…he told me he couldn't give me more, so we parted ways after only two weeks together. He went on to mess around with other people."

"And you?" Kenny took steps forward to stand in front of Kai.

"I haven't been in a relationship since then. I suppose it's something you don't get over easily. I had a few one night stands between breaking up with him, and now, but he was the first person I fell in love with. They say first loves are sometimes the most important ones…I guess you can say I made a bad choice when it came to picking out my first love," Kai laughed bitterly. "I guess Tala's right about me being dumb when it comes to love."

"You're not stupid," Kenny exclaimed softly. "He's an idiot for not recognizing how wonderful a person you are. He didn't know what he had in his hands. He let a perfectly good relationship slip through his fingers when he had the chance to make something of it. I would never do you like that Kai."

"I know you wouldn't," Kai assured.

"No…I want you to know this, so will you listen to me?" Kenny asked, his heart hammering in his chest harder, as he clenched the area. He had to say it; he may never get another chance to do this. He couldn't let Kai just walk away without his true feelings being understood. Even if Kai couldn't accept it now, maybe one day he would be able to understand just how deep his feelings went, and know that it wasn't just a crush.

"Of course," Kai nodded. "I would never turn you away if there's something on your mind."

Kenny took a deep breath, forcing his legs forward to stand in front of Kai. "Kai, I don't know if you're able to accept this, but I want you to know that my feelings for you aren't just those of a kid with a crush. I…I really do have feelings for you. You might not be able to accept that now because I'm still your student and a minor, but at least consider there's someone who really wants to have a genuine relationship with you. I can wait…I really do care for you as both a friend…and someone who wouldn't mind becoming closer to you on a level of attraction."

"I appreciate your words," Kai said.

"But…" There was always a 'but' in these situations. Rejection weighed down on Kenny's head as he lowered head to the ground. Kai's heart went out to the crestfallen look flickering over the teen, reaching his hand out to pull the brunette closer to him. The action caused Kenny to look up startled, wisps of hair falling from his eyes. Taking the incentive to brush aside the mass, Kai leaned up and touched his lips to the boy's forehead gently, pulling back seconds later. Once more color stained Kenny's cheeks as his mouth fell open at the action.

"There are no buts," Kai assured. "However, I wish I could have known someone as heartfelt as you existed much earlier than now. You don't mind if we taken it a few steps at a time, I feel a little guilty being seduced by own student when he looks so endearing."

"Kai…" Tears formed in the corners of Kenny's eyes seeing the warm smile directed at him. A giant smile curled his mouth upwards as he threw his arms around Kai's neck. A pair of arms wrapped around his small waist, drawing the body closer. "Thank you…"

"No, thank you for showing me that sometimes the best things are closer than you realize." Saying that, Kai made a mental note to give Tala his props for having a purpose in life every now and then; he was going to do his best now to stop pushing his heart into a corner and figure out where this road was going to lead them both.


	15. Chapter 14

Rimi: Well, it's me again everyone. I know I took long to get this chapter written and posted. I've been fighting with myself to do it and not do it for a while. And then you're all getting this chapter while your ever favorite writer has come down with a slight cold. So it's extra insane this chapter around! I figure sooner or later this encounter would occur, so I asked around and two of my friends said they wanted it sooner rather than later. So enjoy what my sick-literally-mind has conjured up.

**_------------oooooo---------------_**

_Chapter 14_

"You know Tyson," Kenny tilted his head to the side, staring at his friend that was immersed in playing _Legend of Zelda_ on his _Gameboy_. "You didn't have to come all this way with me to make sure that nothing happened to me on the bus."

"No, it's my duty to ride with you all this way to make sure that nothing happens to you on the bus," Tyson corrected, lifting his eyes momentarily from having Link move a boulder over a hole. "Besides, I was planning to head over to my cousin's place to pick up a new _Playstation_ game for a few days. Since you were going this way, and I have to take the bus out this way, I figured that we can kill two birds with one stone."

"I only need one mother to fret over me, Tyson," Kenny smiled, nevertheless the brunette was grateful he wasn't going to be given time to run himself crazy before getting to Kai's place.

It had only been a week since summer vacation for his teacher had begun, but Kai had called him up. In truth, Tala managed to hold of his number from Kai's cell phone secretly, telling the brunette to come over and visit without it being brought to Kai's attention. Of course, when Kai learned what his long time red headed best friend did, Kenny found it amusing to listen to his teacher profusely apologize for Tala bothering him, whilst threatening to end Tala's life in the next five minutes once he got off the phone.

It took Kenny approximately five minutes to get Kai to agree not to end his friendship with Tala permanently, hence gaining him residence in the state prison. Another six minutes to reassure his teacher that even if he got his grandfather to get him off on the charges, he would dearly miss the red head. That led to three minutes of more assurance that the red head would be missed. After the incident was finally settled, Tala thanking Kenny in the background for helping to defend his life, Kenny told Kai that he did not mind the idea of spending a day at his house if he were to permit it.

Feeling that Kai was uncomfortable towards the idea that he would come over out of the blue, Kenny was about to back out. Thanks to Tala once again, who nagged Kai up a wall to tell Kenny it was okay to come over and he was fine with it, this certain trip on the bus with his "second mother" was the end result of that phone conversation.

"No, you need two," Tyson said. "You should be lucky that you have two."

"And why should I be?" Kenny leaned back in the seat, staring out the window.

"Because if you only had your mother to fret with you, you'll be bare foot, pregnant, and on welfare by the time you're nineteen," Tyson commented, not bothering to look up at his friend who didn't even bother to wonder what soap opera his friend had been watching recently. As if reading his friend's mind, Tyson grinned ever so slight. "Not any of my soaps. My brother has been watching _Maury_."

"Have I ever commented on how alike you and your brother are most days?" Kenny questioned.

"I'm nothing like that bum." Tyson made a face, thinking about his older brother.

"So you say," Kenny teased. "I bet his mother complex is bigger than yours, which is why you need an outlet to fret over."

"If I were born a girl, I would have my own tower in our backyard with government level security to it," Tyson said.

"See, I told you," Kenny chuckled.

"Isn't your stop right there?" Tyson looked up and pointed to a sign they were about to pass. Briefly watching Kenny jump up, pulling on the cable to illuminate the stop in the front of the bus, he made his way to the front with a quick wave to where Tyson was sitting. Pausing his game long enough to make sure that Kenny got to the sidewalk in peace, Tyson saved his game, thinking about his friend telling him about finally having enough courage to tell their teacher about his feelings in full.

It was a great load off Tyson's shoulders not having to worry that his friend's feelings were not reciprocated. Maybe it would be the push that Kenny needed in having more confidence with life. All he had ever wanted for his friend was a chance to find someone that he could be on the same level as him to enjoy company with. Not that Tyson was selling himself short, but Kenny was happiest when there was someone there to challenge him intellectually. Someone like their teacher could help to break Kenny's introverted nature.

Kenny smiled as the bus pulled away, his eyes lingering on Tyson who was absently staring at him from the bus window. Kenny waved at his friend who blinked, then flushed slightly at being caught staring, Tyson then turned his eyes away with a grin. Turning away from the sight of the bus pulling away, Kenny continued along his way to Kai's place. His heart pounded in his chest, thinking about this visit.

"There's no reason to nervous," Kenny told himself. "It's not like anything is going to happen. I'm just visiting, and Tala and Bryan are going to be there." He had nothing to worry about, at all. So why weren't the butterflies in his stomach going away as he made his way up the walkway to the house? Why wasn't the sweat coating his palms drying? Why did he feel like he should just turn around and forget the idea?

"Tala, give me back that ficus!"

"No! I'm throwing it out the upstairs window!" Kenny stopped just before getting to the porch to find the front door of Kai, Tala, and Bryan's house open. Inside, he could see Bryan chasing around his red haired friend who carried a potted plant above his head, dashing from one end of the room to another. "I'm tired of this damn thing! It's trying to kill me!"

"That ficus is not trying to kill you!" Bryan shouted.

"How do you know?" Tala retorted as he dodged around Bryan, making it out the front door onto the porch. Climbing onto the rail, Tala raised the plant higher. "Stay back or the plant gets it!"

"This is ridiculous, Tala," Bryan growled, storming out onto the porch, then stopped seeing the situation. "Get your ass down off the rail! Remember the last time you tried doing something like this, you ended up breaking your leg."

"It's different this time!" Tala said stubbornly.

"I swear if you don't put my plant down, I'm going to break both your arms if you think about hurling my plant into the yard," Bryan threatened.

"This damn shrub has been trying to kill me for the past month! Every time I walk towards the kitchen it scoots into my way so I can trip over it and fall. I'm going to wait around for this thing to make me break my neck! I'm going to destroy it now!" Tala raised the plant just a little higher over his head as Bryan slowly inched towards him. "Stay back!"

"Let's talk this out," Bryan said. "We put you on lithium and then you and my ficus won't have a problem anymore."

"I told you I don't need lithium! I'm not crazy! It's the plant's fault! I swear to you, you and these plants are trying to drive me insane," Tala retorted.

"I beg to differ," Bryan said, rushing at Tala, grabbing his legs. The red head screamed as he flipped backwards off the rail onto his back in the grass. The plant laid on its side, miraculously the pot received no damage in the fall. Tala groaned in pain, turning his head to the pot that laying beside him. Bryan made his way off the porch, picking up the plant, checking to make sure that it wasn't damaged then stared down at his friend who looked up at him.

"I need help up, I think I cracked my spine," Tala said.

"Bryan! Tala, what are you doing now!" A middle aged woman from next door stuck her head out her living room window. "I thought I told you two not to start a ruckus today!"

"It's that old bat," Tala whispered.

"We were just surveying what we need to do to the house, Ms. Jenkinson," Bryan called over to the woman that shook her head at the two boys.

"Then why is Tala laying on his back?" the woman shouted.

"I'm enjoying the sun you o—" Bryan stepped on Tala's mouth to stop him from saying the rest of his sentence.

"Don't mind him, he's just testing the grass, don't worry about it Ms. Jenkinson. Just go back to watching your soaps. Everything is under control," Bryan smiled as the woman stuck her head back in the window, slamming the window shut. Sighing, he moved his foot from over Tala's mouth who gasped, sitting up to cough.

"You should have let me call her an old bat!" Tala huffed. "She's always scolding us for stuff ever since we moved in. She needs to find a husband and leave us alone."

"I take it this is an every day occurrence for you," Kenny laughed, making his presence known by the two men. Both turned their attention to Kenny who was making his way towards them with a huge smile on his face.

"How are you doing?" Tala hopped up. "We thought you weren't going to come!"

"If I didn't live with you, I wouldn't come either," Bryan shook his head, proceeding towards the front door with his ficus.

"Shut up, Bryan! Why don't you go next door with your girlfriend and watch soaps," Tala shouted, as Ms. Jenkinson stuck her head out another window.

"Tala!"

"God, what do you want you old bat!" Tala yelled at her. The woman turned bright red as she leaned further out of the window. "Get back in the window before you fall out into the bushes, and I'm not coming over to pull you out!"

"If you keep disturbing my peace I'm going to call the police on you again!" Ms. Jenkinson said.

"Do it then!" Tala taunted.

"Tala stop taunting her!" Bryan snapped.

"She started it!" Tala whined.

"What have I told you about taunting her? If the police come out here again, we're going to be fined for another one of your squabbles," Bryan said. "And it's going to be coming out of your check this time to pay for it."

"Fine," Tala pouted, turning his attention to Kenny. "Bryan always sticks up for his girlfriend."

"Who's that child, Tala?" the ever nosy woman turned her attention on Kenny. "Does his parents know he's over there?"

"He's my underage mail order boyfriend," Tala called with a giant grin on his face, wrapping an arm around Kenny's waist, drawing the teen close to him. The woman's face turned bright red, her eyes widening as she leaned further out the window. "Want me to give you the website that I picked him out from, maybe they have someone for you too."

"Tala get your ass in the house!" Bryan demanded.

"Oh fine," Tala huffed, leading Kenny up the stairs to the house as the woman screamed about calling the police on him. "I swear you never get on her about getting on my case all the time. It's always 'Tala stop taunting my girlfriend' or 'Tala you're making my girlfriend worry about us'. You should just move over there with her to keep her occupied with something other than my habits."

Tala moved his arm from around Kenny in order to shut the door behind them. Bryan was placing the ficus on the mantle by the stairway. Once finished he threw a candlestick at Tala's head, glowering at the red head. Tala yelped, staring down at the candlestick that now lay on the floor by his foot.

"Now would you like to say another word?" Bryan asked. "If you're so energetic, help me rearrange the furniture in the living room so we can be done with this task for the day. I have a date tonight and I'm not going to miss it because of another one of your spastic moments."

"Dates, dates, dates. Is sex all you think about?" Tala voiced.

"I'm not getting into that conversation with a minor present," Bryan nodded in Kenny's general direction, who was amused at their interaction. It showed that they had indeed been friends for most of their life the way they argued and fought.

"I'm sure Kenny's old enough to hear about what goes on between two people. You've had that talk in school, right?" Tala questioned to the brunette.

"It doesn't matter! I'm not having this conversation with him present," Bryan stated.

"I know," Tala said, clasping his hands behind his head.

"You have no couth, Tala," Kenny shook his head. "You're reminding me of my friend Tyson."

"That's not nice to say to your elders," Tala pouted.

"Can you even been considered older with the way you act?" Bryan sighed, raking a hand through his hair. "He acts more mature than you. Hell, Ian acts more mature than you, and he's not even in high school yet."

"But I like my big brother the way he is," Ian said from the top of the staircase. "If he was mature like most adults he wouldn't be fun to have around."

"Don't encourage him, Ian," Bryan shook his head.

"My little brother loves me!" Tala singsong.

"Hi, the name's Ian Papov," Ian waved to the brunette looking up at him. "I'm Tala's younger step brother. You're one of Kai's students, aren't you?"

"Huh? Yeah," Kenny nodded.

"I can tell off the bat," Ian grinned. "Welcome to our little funhouse. You'll get use to it if you haven't run out of here screaming by now."

"I've seen a lot worst," Kenny laughed, liking the kid already.

"Ian, why don't you get down here and help us too. Calling Eliza every five minutes to make sure she hasn't been hit on by some guy you don't know will run the poor girl to turning off her phone," Bryan teased.

Red eyes twinkled with mischief as the teenage boy with messy blue hair grinned. "At least I have a girlfriend who won't hang up on me the first two minutes of conversation, then have my number blocked out the next week because I decided to take her twin sister for a test run."

"Oh, that's still got to hurt," Tala said tiptoeing out the room as Bryan whirled around to glower at him.

"You told Ian!" Bryan yelled.

"I…it," Tala stammered, taking a step back his angry friend who stomped towards him. "He overheard me! It's not like I told him everything!"

"I thought I told you not to tell anyone about that!" Bryan said lunging for Tala who screamed then ran through the house into the kitchen, making his way for the backdoor. Bryan was close behind him; Tala's screaming still ringing through the house. Moments later, the sound of the backdoor swinging shut could be heard. The noise eventually died down somewhat as the chase could be heard continuing outside.

Ian walked down the stairs, coming to stand next to Kenny. The boy was almost half a head shorter than him, surprising the brunette because he didn't think he would actually find someone he had to tilt his head down to talk to.

"You sure you want to remain here with them? You still have a chance to leave," Ian laughed.

"I've still seen worst," Kenny smiled. "If they haven't been dragged out of an arcade screaming about handcuffing themselves to a Dance Dance Revolution machine until the machine starts smoking from being unable to handle their skills, then I'm not going to be ran off that easily."

Ian gave him a disbelieving look before laughing. "You have some maniac friends! I would love to meet them!"

"Are you here all summer?" Kenny asked, finding it was easy to talk with the boy who acted more his age than a middle school student who would be going into high school for his first year come August. "Maybe I can round up Tyson, Max, and Rei so you can meet them. Then we can compare their levels of dementia."

"I think I've made an instant friend!" Ian beamed.

"I concur," Kenny nodded.

"So, are you the one that Kai goes out with now, because if you aren't, that's disappointing," Ian replied, tilting his head up to find the heat tinting the sophomore's face. "My brother can't keep his mouth shut about anything. I overheard him talking to Kai about you yesterday. Kai really seems to like you a lot too. It's the first time ever I've seen him with anyone."

"Ian, you don't mind I wish for your brother's endangerment at the moment do you?" Kenny wondered, as the younger laughed.

"Go ahead, if he chattered away about me and my girlfriend like that, I would be in the same mood as you," Ian grinned.

"Speaking of Kai…is he here?"

"He went to _Home Depot _to pick up a can of paint for the rooms upstairs," Ian shook his head. "He told me to make sure that my brother doesn't misbehave, to keep Bryan from killing my brother, and to look out for company that would be coming over today. It seems I've failed in all those except for the company part. Sometimes you have to know when to cut your loses in situations like this."

"Sometimes that's the only option we're given," Kenny commented, as the house phone ran. Ian walked over to the cordless phone sitting on a table stand by the living room entrance, picking it up.

"Kuznetsov, Hiwatari, Ivanov residence, how may I help you?"

"Ian, where's Tala and Bryan?" Kai said on the other end of the phone.

"Currently I believe they're having your next door neighbor call the police of them for running around the house with Bryan trying to kill Tala for having a big mouth about that set of twins." On the other end of the phone, Ian heard Kai groan. "Look on the bright side it's not really illegal for them to chase each other around the house."

"That's going to go on forever. I need one of them to bring me the spare tire from the garage. Your ingenious older brother thought it smart to take it out my trunk for whatever reason lies in his head," Kai sighed.

"I'll go outside and see can I round them up," Ian said. "Hang on and talk to Kenny while I see what I can do." Tossing the phone to Kenny who caught it, Ian made his way outside to see whether he can stop the carnage. Kenny placed the phone to his ear.

"Hi Kai," Kenny said shyly, feeling the heat from his cheeks burning furiously.

"You decided to come over after all." Kai sounded astonished, leading Kenny to wonder if his teacher had been anxious over this day too. The thought settled Kenny who realized that he wasn't the only one feeling a little awkward.

"I couldn't turn down the offer after Tala made it clear that he would run us both up a wall if I didn't come over and visit," Kenny chuckled a little. "Not to mention I got introduced to your next door neighbor as Tala's underage mail ordered boyfriend."

"I hope Bryan kills him," Kai muttered.

"I keep telling you, you'll miss him if he's dead, not to mention that he has family who will cry at his funeral if he's gone. Do you really think that will be good?"

"I beg to differ this time," Kai said. "And besides, his family will jump with jubilation with his reign of terror ending over their souls."

"That's not nice to say. They will miss him greatly, Bryan will miss him greatly, and so will you," Kenny assured. "Even if it's just a little. The three of you have been friends for a long time after all."

"I'm telling you, I won't," Kai argued.

"You will," Kenny reassured. "So stop thinking about him dying."

"I'm not going to win this conversation, am I?" Kai inquired.

"No, but it's sweet that you're trying to anyway," Kenny smiled as Ian stuck his head into the door. Outside the noise had significantly quieted down, no screams sounding around the house.

"Kenny, tell Kai that my brother and Bryan are on their way with the tire," Ian said.

"Kai, Ian says that Tala and Bryan are on their way with the tire," Kenny reported.

"Are you going to be okay here if I go with them?" Ian wondered. "Someone has to keep them motivated on the task."

"I'll be fine, I'll just wait here," Kenny said.

"All right, hopefully it won't take that long." Ian closed the door, the sound of an engine starting up followed by car doors shutting. Listening to the car that backed out of the driveway into the street. The car drove away, everything becoming silent once again.

"You two seem to be getting along well," Kai commented after a few seconds of silence.

"Me and Ian?" Kenny questioned.

"Yes."

"He's really bright for his age, not to mention he doesn't act like a middle school kid. He's easy to speak with and it seems like he's my age, not two years younger than me. It seems like your influence a little," Kenny smiled, going into the living room to sit down on the couch.

"I can not take the credit for that. Ian was a bright kid when I met him. He's clever and witty, and more mature than I've seen a kid his age. If only his older brother would take a lesson from him to grow up a little," Kai sighed.

"Tala's not so bad, he has a personality that's hard to hate. He's mature in his own way I suppose," Kenny contemplated.

"At times I question," Kai exhaled.

"Tyson's the same way, so don't worry," Kenny laughed. "They're both useful when they need to be, that's what matters the most."

"Why can't Tala be useful all the time is my question?" Kai groaned.

"One day. That's all you can patiently say," Kenny said humorously.

"I'll be dead by then," Kai huffed.

"No you won't. I won't let you die," Kenny stated.

"Does that mean you'll resuscitate me while I'm waiting around for the day when Tala grows up to be a decent human being?" Kai wondered. Kenny inward smiled at the thoughts roaming through his head towards that statement. He could say what was on the tip of his tongue however that wasn't his style, not to mention that they weren't in a comfortable enough place with each other on levels of intimacy to utter his thoughts, instead he opted for the more reasonable answer.

"I'll have EMS on speed dial for you."

"And what if it takes them a while to get to where we are? I'm going to need an immediate means to be revived," Kai said. Was Kai really testing him to see what his answer would be? Kenny leaned back on the couch with a giant grin. Perhaps he should say what it was that was on his tongue. Tilting his head to the side, Kenny contemplated his answer. Another thought popped into his head, a mischievous smirk rising to his lips towards making his teacher pay for being so mean in teasing him offhandedly.

"Well then, I guess we'll just have to employ Tala for that job since he was the one that caused the situation to occur in the first place," Kenny said softly as he heard Kai make a sound that almost sounded like fear. "Are you done teasing me now, Kai?"

"Yes, I'm done. I'm going to have nightmares now thanks to you," Kai said, his voice having undertones of repulsion at the thought of the red head placing his lips anywhere near him. "I hope you know that you've set us back more than three paces with that comment."

"You'll get over it. You shouldn't have found it nice to tease a poor kid about his crush," Kenny replied.

"I'll know better next time you imp. When I get back there, I'm going to put you to work paining," Kai announced.

"We will see when you get here," Kenny stated.

"We will definitely see."

"Bye Kai, I'll see you when you get here," Kenny said.

"Bye you imp." Hearing the smile in Kai's voice as he hung up, Kenny allowed the giant grin on his face to show through, a strange warm tingling circulated through his body as he leaned back further into the chair. It was going to be a good summer he thought, and not just with confessing to his teacher about his feelings. He couldn't put his finger on it, but the winds of change were blowing something exciting in.

Making himself more comfortable while he waited for Kai, Tala, Bryan, and Ian to come back, he found the remote to the TV. Turning it on, he laughed at the fact that it was playing a DVD, and that certain DVD was _Disney's Peter Pan_. Oddly enough, he had a feeling that it belonged to none other than Tala. He highly doubt in his mind neither Kai nor Bryan would own the movie. In his mind he could definitely see Tala in front of the TV like a five year old kid avidly watching the movie from beginning to end over and over again until Kai and Bryan forced him to move.

Getting up to cut the DVD off, a knock sounded on the door. Setting down the remote, Kenny contemplated whether or not he should answer the door. It could be the crazy next door neighbor with the police in tow, which he could calmly assess the situation, or perhaps someone looking for one of the three occupants of the house; or just one of those door to door people looking to sell incenses and oils.

Another knock sounded on the door, Kenny opting to just answer the door and find out what the person wanted. Walking from the living room back into the hallway, he reached the door just as another knock sounded. Pulling the door open, Kenny's eyes met with none other than Kai's ex. The red head blinked, surprised to find Kai's student answer the door. Kenny resisted the urge to close the door in the red head's face, but he was raised better, and his often polite nature forced him to keep the door open.

"Is Kai home?" Brooklyn questioned the boy giving him a weary look.

"No, he's out at the moment. I don't know when he'll be back," Kenny answered the man. "From what I was told, he stepped out to go to _Home Depot_."

"Oh, and he didn't take you with him?" Brooklyn raised a brow.

"He was already gone by the time I came over," Kenny said simply with a shrug. "If you want, when he comes back, I can mention that you stopped by."

"You can mention?" Brooklyn smirked cocking his head to the side. "That won't be necessary I'll just wait for him to come back."

"Sorry, but you'll have to wait on the porch if you're going to wait. Since this isn't my house, I can't grant you access with Tala and Bryan being out, and I have no idea if Kai wants you in here or not," Kenny said coolly as he met the older man's eyes that were filled with amusement he was standing up to him.

"I'm no stranger to this house kid I've been in many times. Kai wouldn't mind if I go up to his room and wait for him," Brooklyn said, finding the boy not so much as flinched at the comment. He was sure that an off handed comment would throw the boy off. This kid was starting to interest him if he believed that he was going to challenge him for Kai.

"I'm sure any other time stalking around someone's bedroom without them knowing is fine, nevertheless, I can't condone it while I'm consciously aware of you here. So I'm going to ask you to wait outside on the porch until the rightful owners of this house return," Kenny said. "So, you only have one option open to you."

"What a clever comeback," Brooklyn laughed.

"Thank you, but is that all you can come up with to cover that you were just told off by a kid?" Kenny wondered.

"You have it all wrong," Brooklyn shook his head. "Do you think I would allow myself to be told off by a kid?"

"Mister, I hate to deflate your ego, but you just were," Kenny corrected. "There's no way around that, unless your ego is in fact that enormous that you don't know when to politely step down like a man when you've been best."

"Watch your mouth kid," Brooklyn warned. "Just because Kai might find that mouth of yours cute—"

"It's not just my mouth he finds cute," Kenny interrupted. "I do believe he finds everything about me cute, and not just my mouth. So, are we done with this challenge? Just so you know, I'm not going anywhere, and there's no way that I'm going to give you a chance to hit on Kai while I'm around."

"You're far from being a man to take me on when it comes to him," Brooklyn said, narrowing his eyes. "You have no idea how to keep a man happy, little boy."

"Oh, and you do?" Kenny raised a cynical brow. "Kai told me all about your idea of a relationship, and pardon me saying, but I sure as hell can't do worst than what you've already done. If anything, my success rate at having a real relationship with Kai is most definitely fifty times than you succeeding in getting him in bed. You might be older than me, you might have more experience than me in the category of dating, but there's one thing that sets us apart. I'm smart enough to learn from my experiences to try to make someone other than myself happy. Now, are you going to wait on the porch or leave and I give Kai the message you came by?"

Kenny watched the tall red head clench his jaw shut, cooling the anger that was shown in his eyes. Raking a hand through his hair, he glared down at Kenny who let the look slide off without caring he had damaged the red head's over inflated ego. It seemed about time that he had his high horse kicked from under him down to ground level. Awaiting the next exchange of words, Kenny found a smirk rise to his rival's lips.

"It seems that I have indeed been bested for the moment by a child," Brooklyn said. "You want to have a chance at him then, be my guest. In the end when he realizes that a child can't satisfy him, he'll come around."

"This child, as you keep calling me, will be a man long before you can grow up," Kenny said, closing the door in Brooklyn's face. Leaning with his back against the door, he listened to the red head leave the porch. A few minutes later he heard a car pulling away. Letting out a sigh, he rubbed his temples, feeling a light headache approaching. He didn't know how anyone could be that overbearing without noticing.

Pushing away from the door, Kenny went to the kitchen, looking in the refrigerator to find a can of Coke on the second shelf. Taking it from the refrigerator, the brunette went back to the living room to find something to watch while waiting for Kai, Tala, Bryan, and Ian to come back. Eventually, he ended up finding a copy of _Carlito's Way_, settling into his seat with is Coke to watch the movie.

Thirty minutes into the movie, the sounds of the crazy next door neighbor shouting things at Tala could be heard. Curious as to what was going on now, he paused the movie, making his way outside to find the woman was on the sidewalk with two police officers and Tala was leaning against the police car talking to another officer. Ian was sitting on the porch amusing watching the show. Turning his attention to Kenny who came to sit down beside him, he broke out in a big grin.

"Do I want to know?" Kenny asked.

"Do you really want to find out?" Ian countered.

"Tala will you stop taunting her!" Bryan said, to his friend who was smirking at the woman.

"He should be locked up!" Ms. Jenkinson shouted.

"And you need to get laid," Tala snorted.

"Tala, stop taunting her," the police officer the red head was talking to sighed.

"Oh come on, she starts it all the time! I have a right to make a point," Tala said to the police officer. "It's not like I've ever done anything to her. Your aunt is crazy!"

"Tala," the officer said with a look.

"Yeah, I know. I'll leave her alone today as long as she doesn't start in on me again, and call you out here again for nothing. I keep telling Bryan that he needs to—" Bryan slapped a hand over Tala's mouth, pulling him away from the scene. Kai came up the stairs with a can of paint in one hand and a bag in another, muttering about Tala being the death of him.

"Kai," Kenny grinned, sipping on his soda. "I think I might have to come over your house a lot more for this sort of entertainment."

"Please, don't remind me I have to deal with this all the time," Kai groaned. Kenny took the bag from Kai, following his teacher into the house. "I see you made yourself at home."

"Yep, I even got rid of unwanted company before you came back. Just so you know, I think your ex might not like me much now," Kenny announced as Kai whirled around to look at him.

"Brooklyn was over here? Did he say anything to you?" Kai worried, a frown knitting his brows together as Kenny gave him an impish grin.

"It's not so much what he said to me, it's correct to say what I said to him," Kenny voiced. "I doubt he's going to want to challenge me again for a while."

"Should I ask?" Kai blinked.

"Maybe not, some things are better off not questioning if it's not worth it," Kenny said with an incisive smile. "Today's one of those days that we can say it's not worth it at all."


	16. Christmas side story special

Welcome everyone to my first ever in story side holiday story…if that even makes sense to anyone. Well, since it's the holidays and my friends requested a little holiday story cheer, I thought what better story to do a holiday side story for, and Dear Teacher came to mind. Not only is it a holiday story, the main focus of this one is none other than everyone's favorite maniac shouta lover: Tala. I batted an idea to Chaco about why Tala and the next door neighbor don't get along, and this idea was what came to mind. So sit back and enjoy, and Happy Holidays to everyone.

-Rimnerel Ayasugi

**_-------------OOOOOO--------------_**

_-Two years ago previous to the present story-_

Somewhere within the big house, Christmas music played on a stereo, the sounds wafted through the up and downstairs floors of the house. Somewhere else in the house hammering could be heard, followed by someone screaming at the person that was doing the hammering.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" The first voice was deep, a distinctive tenor that fit the person he belonged to. Tones of annoyance colored the first voice questioning the person that was hammering away in the house. The second voiced that answered was higher, more energetic in nature. This voice was also filled with annoyance, but for a different reason as the first voice.

"What does it look like? You have two eyes don't you?"

"That's not what I meant," the first voice growled, this voice belonged to a young man by the name of Bryan Kuznetsov. The young man's moonlight colored eyes focused-and narrowed-on a red head with a hammer in his hand. The red head was his best friend of almost thirteen years, Tala Ivanov.

"Then why did you say it?" Tala questioned, placing a hand on his hip as he lowered the hammer from crucifying a stocking to the wall.

"You…" Bryan stopped whatever it was he was about to say, turning away from the red head to count backwards from thirty to zero. In the middle of this task, he was interrupted by hammering once again. Whirling around to find the red head hammering yet another stocking into the wall, he reached out and yanked the hammer from his friend. The red head protested, turning to his friend. "Will you stop that?!"

"What do you have against me spreading Christmas joy to this house, you scrooge?" Tala complained. "Give me my hammer back!"

"I'm not giving you the hammer, and I'm not a scrooge," Bryan snapped, his brow twitching repeatedly as he had a stare down with his friend. Sometimes he really wondered how he survived all these years without having killed the twenty-two year old for moments like this. "I'm not going to allow you to hammer anymore stockings into the wall, so give up this fight now."

"Scrooge," Tala huffed, shuffling away from where he had already hammered seven stockings into the wall. "It's Christmas Eve and you're stopping me from spreading holiday cheer."

"How is spreading holiday cheer in conjunction to hammering seven stockings into our walls? Mind you, these are walls that we don't own because we're still renting the house currently?" Bryan reminded. "And must I bring up the factor that we're going to have a hell of a time getting those damn stockings out the wall without causing anymore damage than you're already done. Did you think about that mister holiday cheer before you went and crucified those stockings?"

Tala turned his eyes on the stockings then outside the window where flashing lights caught his eye for a few seconds. "It's God's will."

"Don't blame God on this!" Bryan shouted. "So help me, I will hammer your head into the wall."

"When did you become so religious?" Tala wondered. "I thought you went against your religious upbringings by whoring yourself out to any available women that will date you?"

"That's not the point of why I said it!" Bryan said, a tic in his jaw irritating him as he resisted the urge to murder his friend on Christmas Eve. The front door to the house sounded as it was opened and closed, the sounds of footsteps coming into the living room. Their house mate and friend for as long as the two had known each other, Kai Hiwatari, stopped in the doorway finding his two best friends. Noting the stockings on the wall, he didn't even bother to ask.

"Oh! You're back, Kai!" Tala wandered away from Bryan to grin at his other best friend, finding the paper bag under Kai's arm. "Did you get anything good while you were out? I really hope it's good Vodka this time. Last time we sent you to the _ABC store_, you brought back that weak stuff and you made me drive all the way there to get something good. I'm not planning to be sober for Christmas."

"Sometimes I speculate if you're ever sober with some of the things that come out of your mind, Tala," Kai shook his head. The twenty-two year old English teacher at one of the local high schools handed the bottle over to his friend, walking over to where Bryan stood surveying how much damage they were going to have to fix, in taking out the stockings from the wall. "I see you stopped him from hammering more into our wall."

"He's being a scrooge, you shouldn't stand too close to him, it might rub off on you, Kai," Tala called over his shoulder as he pulled out the bottle. "Great Kai! You did right this time! Bryan, we're going to have an awesome Christmas!"

"It will be awesome as you say if you don't lace all the food with Vodka like last year. If it wasn't for Aida, we would not have had Christmas dinner," Bryan stated.

"That was miscalculation about the taste, Vodka makes everything taste better," Tala protested.

"Not when it's laced in the mashed potatoes, you alcoholic…what in your right state of mind caused you to think that just because Vodka comes from potatoes it would make the potatoes that much better?" Kai wondered.

"Vodka comes from potatoes?" Tala gaped, his eyes widening.

"Don't tell me you didn't know that?" Bryan said. Bryan and Kai turned to look at each other, then their amazed friend. "You didn't know that…"

"That's like kick ass! Does it work the same for yams? They are sort of in the same potato family!" Tala's eyes lit up as he was about to wander into the kitchen and pour the bottle into the pan of candied yams that were cooking in the oven. Kai and Bryan quickly blocked his way to impede his attempt at spicing up the food by means of alcohol.

"How about we save your experimentation for another day? We'll buy you some yams to ruin for New Year's. But I doubt Aida is going to appreciate the fact you want to turn Ian into an alcoholic at an early age," Kai voiced.

"Oh yeah…he is coming over, isn't he?" Tala blinked, thinking about his stepmother had nearly taken his head off last time when she realized what the food was laced with. If he did a repeat, the woman was likely to make sure that he didn't make it to see another Christmas. "All right, since I don't want to die before I find my perfect mate, I'll let you two win this battle, but I'm holding you to buying me some sweet potatoes for New Year's."

"Whatever you want, just please," Kai said wearily.

"Should I question what he means when he says his perfect mate?" Bryan raised a brow.

"His shouta complex again," Kai responded.

"It's an advanced shouta complex," Tala corrected.

"Right…" Bryan said shaking his head. He had no idea what his friend found so attractive about someone who was shorter than him acting like a prepubescent boy. Then again, as often as his friend had his levels of bipolar behavior between switching moods, figuring out what was wrong with his friend's taste tied into a greater mystery of the unknown anomalies known as Tala's thought process.

"Is your father planning to come tomorrow early, Tala?" Kai questioned, changing the subject before he gave the red head a chance to explain what was so great about having an advanced shouta complex over the typical one. The last time that happened, it ended in a _PowerPoint_presentation in their living room, almost causing Bryan to call the police on Tala in question to how he got pictures of elementary school boys at recess.

"I think he mentioned something about seven or eight tomorrow morning. They plan to bring the turkey over as long as we have everything else ready by the time they arrived," Tala said. "I talked with them earlier this evening while I was still spreading more Christmas cheer to our home. Then scrooge took my hammer from me and told me I couldn't."

"Are you still keeping in mind we're renting the place?" Bryan said.

"Hn." Tala said nothing as he cradled the bottle in his arm.

"Oh, you don't have anything to say whenever I mention that. Because it makes you think that we still have a ways to go before we're able to pay off our student loans and repairing those walls cost money that we don't have because currently we have not applied our degrees for job placement. And if we have to rely on Kai to repair everything you decide to go gung-ho on then he's never going to let you hear the end of it because he's the lucky bastard who was has a rich grandfather paying off all his loans," Bryan proclaimed.

"Articulate your words," Kai said with a frown. "It's not like I begged my grandfather to do me any favors."

"Yes we know, but you still are a lucky bastard," Bryan said.

"Why don't you go check the food," Kai said.

"Don't try to change the subject," Bryan said.

"Don't worry, I will," Kai promised, walking to the couch to sit down. "It's not like I'm getting a lump sum from that man as allowance to make up for the fact of being a teacher which doesn't seem to pay as well as it use to."

"Kids now and days are just churned out, why would they want to pay you more for that?" Tala commented, coming to flop down on the couch beside his friend. "I remember when we were kids."

"You're still a kid," Bryan announced walking into the kitchen to check on the food.

"Thank you!" Tala chimed.

"I doubt he meant that as a compliment," Kai voiced.

"Well I'm going to take it as one," Tala glared, sitting the bottle of Vodka on the table. Reclining back on the couch, he tilted his head to the side, staring at Kai. "It's Christmas time, you two need to stop being such scrooges. I say we get drunk and have a party, just the three of us like old times when we were in college."

"I say it's time you learned to let go of your thoughts to find the perfect boyfriend," Bryan said, walking back in the room with a pie in hand. "Everyone knows the perfect mate doesn't exist anymore. It has become a myth in this day and age."

"Well excuse us mister pessimist who seems to have a new girlfriend every other week, but some of us would like to hold on to our dreams instead of leeching onto a new person more times than a car's oil needs to be changed a month," Tala scoffed.

"Shut up and take this pie next door now that it's cool," Bryan commented, shoving the tin pan into the red head's hands.

"What? Why am I taking this next door? Why are we wasting a perfectly good pie?" Tala frowned, looking down at the apple pie in his hands, then back up at Bryan.

"It's Christmas time, since you want to spread so much Christmas cheer, you're the perfect candidate to take our lovely neighbor Ms. Jenkinson that pie as a way to make up for all the trauma you caused that woman over the year and a half that we've been here," Bryan remarked.

"What trauma?" Tala blinked. "I've never done anything to that lady!"

"Remember when you decided you wanted to learn to fly from the attic and she was just coming home from bible study to see you laying in our front yard, and she thought you were dead and began praying to Jesus?" Bryan said.

"Misdirection," Tala waved off.

"What about hosing that wasps' nest into her yard when she asked you to help her with yard work, then you rushed into the house being chased by an angry swarm, leaving her to make it into her own house before the swarm came after her?" Bryan reminded.

"That wasn't my fault…she was telling me too many things at once. She kept going on about the man she was going to marry when she was younger and how I looked like him. That was just creepy," Tala shuddered.

"What about when she asked you to rake the leaves and you took over our new snow blower and not only blew the leaves from the yard, you also took out all her fall flowers in the process?" Bryan exclaimed.

"I didn't know it had that much power," Tala shrugged.

"It's a snow blower! Use that brain that God gave you once in a while to think about these things," Bryan said. "Take the pie over to the woman. I called her earlier and told her I would send you over when it was cool."

"Why do I have to go? She's going to talk a hole in my head and never let me leave. It's always 'you remind me of Herbert when he was younger. You would have gotten along well with him'. Who the hell is Herbert, and why didn't he marry that woman so she doesn't always call me over to do things? Doesn't she have a nephew? Why doesn't she call him?" Tala huffed, getting up from the couch.

"Because she's always doting on you. Just think of her as the aunt you never knew," Kai smiled. "And I do believe she told us before when we moved in that Herbert was in a car accident which claimed his life on the day their wedding day."

"We sure he didn't just drive his car off a cliff to get out of tying the knot with her?" Tala said, shuffling towards the door. "He probably knew that if he married her, he would spend the rest of his life with a hole in his head listening to her."

"Tala!" Kai scolded.

"Yes, yes, don't speak ill of other people's misfortunes because they can happen to you," Tala nodded.

"Put your boots on, the snow's coming down again," Kai reprimanded. Setting down the pie, Tala pulled out his boots from the side closet, kicking off his slippers to put on the boots. "And make sure you put on your coat, it's not warm outside."

"I'm just going next door, mother, I'll try not to catch pneumonia walking those horrendous fifty feet from our house to hers," Tala stated, opening the door and walking out once the pie was in his hands again. Closing it behind him, he walked down the stairs; Tala raised his eyes up at the sky, as large flakes once more began falling. It was rare for Durham to have a snow due to the area being known for mild winters, but the weatherman for once predicted a good snow storm to hit around the Christmas time for the first white Christmas in about six years.

With a smile on his face, Tala whistled as he walked down the cleared sidewalk to the house that stood next door. Christmas lights were strung on the front porch, Christmas wreaths having from the banisters and on the old oak door. Knocking on the door, he balanced the pie in his hand, as he waited for the woman to come to the door. Down the street, someone shouted something; a car rolled down the street, cautious in the heavy winter snow.

"Ms. Jenkinson! Answer the door, I brought over the pie that Bryan made you!" Tala shouted, hearing footsteps coming towards the door a minute later. Seconds later the front door was opened, for him. The woman in question had her hair in rollers to keep the curls from falling out. A robe was wrapped around her, this not being unusual for the woman who spent most of her time watching soap operas during the day. Looking up at Tala, she smiled as she held the door open for him.

"Hello Tala, how are you doing today?"

"Just fine, ma'am," Tala nodded. "Um…here's your pie."

"Do you mind coming in to sit it on the kitchen table?" Ms. Jenkinson asked.

"No…I don't mind," Tala said, his smile faltering, knowing that she was going to talk a hole into his head before he was able to escape. Slumping his shoulders a little, Tala entered the house, the woman following close behind him.

"Isn't the snow beautiful? I didn't think it would come down this much when the weatherman said we were in for snow. I remember when Herbert and I use to live in Maine, it always snowed around Christmas time. We would take walks looking at all the other couples having a good time. Those were good times," Ms. Jenkinson said. "Young people your age don't like to do those sorts of things now and days, it's always sex, sex, sex. I remember when sex was sacred. You would practice abstinence until you decided to marry. Only loose women and impatient men would have sex so often with different partners."

"Well, you don't have to worry about us, ma'am…well at least Kai and I. You might as well call him a born again virgin for as often as he's been with anyone," Tala laughed. "Bryan is a lost cause. You're better off praying for it to snow each year than hoping he'll be anything but promiscuous."

"And what about you, Tala? A handsome boy like yourself surely has lots of girls lined up waiting to date you?" Ms. Jenkinson said as they entered the kitchen.

"I've only dated a few times in high school and college. I would like to think that I'm saving myself for my perfect mate!" Tala chimed sitting the pie down on the counter. He guessed the woman could be like an aunt he never had. She was pretty harmless after all, and it was only when she saw him outside in the yard that she asked for his help, which wasn't as often due to those misguided events over the year and a half they had lived there.

"So you're a heartbreaker," the woman smiled, walking over to where Tala was standing. "You're a handsome boy. You should think about settling down."

"It's too early to settle down, there's so much I still want to do," Tala shook his head. "Don't tell me that you have a niece hanging around somewhere with her eye on me?"

"I don't think any of my nieces have seen you when they come over. I would never be able to get them from over here watching you mow your lawn without a shirt. But I have heard some of the other girls in the neighbor admit to enjoying the show," the woman grinned.

"Eh? You mean…a bunch of old ladies watch me mow the lawn…" Tala felt a chill run through his spine at the thought that he had been showing off his body to a bunch of middle aged soap opera watching ladies who sat around lusting after his body. "That's a little…disturbing."

"You should be flattered dear," Ms. Jenkinson said.

"That I have a bunch of older woman lusting after me?" Tala gaped.

"You're such a bashful boy," Ms. Jenkinson said, running her hand over Tala's butt, giving it a light squeeze as she watched the young man jump away from her. "You really do remind me of my Herbert, even down to the way you blush like him."

"I'm not blushing!" Tala said, watching the woman undo the belt of her robe. "Hey! What are you doing?"

"Oh, don't be bashful I know you want me too. I've seen the way you've looked at me when I ask you to help me out in the yard," Ms. Jenkinson said, slipping her robe off her shoulders. "How about I help you out with your virginity problem? We can make it a very nice Christmas for the both of us."

Tala let out a high pitch scream of horror finding the woman was clothed in nothing but a sheer teddy underneath her robe. Screaming again at the fact the he had seen parts of his neighbor that he had definitely not wanting to see he rushed across the kitchen, placing the table between them. "You crazy old bat, put your robe on! I don't need and definitely don't want you to help me solve my problem!"

"Oh come on Tala." The woman swayed her hips at him, Tala covering his eyes. "You don't have to be shy. I promise I will take good care of you."

"Oh god please put your robe on! I don't need to see a sixty year old pair of boobs!" Tala cried.

"Stop playing hard to get," the woman made it around the table while the young man had his eyes covered. Tala jumped away from her, right into a wall. Finding himself trapped between the woman and the wall, he whined when she pressed herself against him. "There we go, how about we have some fun now?" Panicked, Tala let out another scream feeling her hands gripping his butt.

"Leave me alone!" Tala said, pushing the woman away, dodging around her to rush out the kitchen. Grabbing the phone from base in the hallway, the red head dove into the closet, wedging a cane between the door handle and floor to keep it from opening. Dialing 911, he listened for the woman to come down the hall looking for him as the emergency operator answered the line. "Send the police! She's trying to rape me!"

"Sir, I'm going to need you to calm down and tell me what your emergency is," the operator said.

"I just told you! She's trying to rape me! She's already showed me a pair of sixty year old boobs, and she's grabbed my ass! Send the police now!" Tala said frantically.

"Tala, where are you?" Ms. Jenkinson said.

"Oh god…she's coming down the hall…" Tala whispered into the phone. "Please send the police to 9803 Glenbrooks Pine before she has her way with me!" Hanging up the phone, he pressed himself deeper into the closet hearing the doorknob jiggle.

"Tala, come out the closet," the woman said. "I'm not going to hurt you honey."

"No! You're just going to show me things I don't want to see! You're the devil aren't you? You've come from Hell to take my soul!" Tala said, pressing against the back of the closet.

"Tala, don't be silly, I'm not the Devil," Ms. Jenkinson said. "Come out the closet."

"No! I like being in the closet! It makes it so I don't have crazy old ladies feeling up on me!" Tala screamed in terror as the door was pulled open a crack. Jumping up, he reached for the handle, yanking the door closed. "I'm not coming out the closet until help arrives!"

"Tala, stop being silly. Open the door!"

"No!" Tala screamed.

The power struggle of getting the door open went on for a few minutes until sirens were heard outside. Feeling the woman let go of the door, Tala rushed from the closet, almost knocking the woman over. Making a run for the door, he threw it open and fled outside as two police officers were stepping out their squad car. Some of the neighbors from across the street were peeping out their windows to find out what was going on.

"She's trying to rape me!" Coincidently one of the officers that had been out on patrol already and answered the called was the woman's nephew. He looked at the frantic Tala, then the woman that was making her way to the door dressed in a sheer teddy, looking bemused by the commotion and the police cars. Two more police cars pulled up sooner after, more officers stepping out their cars.

"Do I…want to know?" the young man blinked, pulling down his hat in embarrassment.

"Your aunt is trying to rape me! Arrest her! She's already shown me parts of her that I did not want to see!" Tala said to the officer.

"Tala, what the hell have you done?" Bryan made his way up to his housemate with Kai close behind, the two stopping to find the current scene of their next door neighbor fussing with the police as she stood in her teddy.

"What have I done? You should be telling me what you've done! You set me up to walk over there to be raped by her, didn't you! You knew she had a thing for me! And you still ship me over there to be robbed of my virginity by that woman!"

"Way to go Tala, at least someone wants to sleep with you," Bryan smirked.

"That's not funny! Do you know what it's like to see a pair of sixty year old breasts? That's going to haunt me for the rest of my life!" Tala exclaimed, covering his eyes, as the other officers got the woman to go back into her house and get her robe.

"Tala, I want you to go home and I'll be over there in a few to find out what happened. I'm sure we can get this straightened out without it becoming more of a mess than it already is. Neighbors heard screaming and called the police, so once we clear that up first, I'm sure everything else will be fine," the officer advised.

"I can clear that up immediately. I was the one screaming for my life. Do you know what it's like to have your aunt groping your butt? That is not something you can take without being verbal towards it," Tala commented, folding his arms over his chest. The officer stared at Tala then looked at Bryan and Kai.

"Yeah, he can scream like a woman sometimes," Bryan spoke. "So it wouldn't surprise me that the scream that was reported came from him."

"Well…this certainly has turned out to be an interesting Christmas Eve. Let me go straighten things out there and we'll be over to take your statement. And Tala, please don't say you want her arrested," the officer sighed.

"She needs to be! Restraining order, please say you will allow me to put a restraining order against her for the next year and a half," Tala begged. "I deserve something for all the emotional damage she has placed on me!"

"Tala, I'll get her not to do it again, but please reconsider getting a restraining order against her," the officer shook his head.

"We'll see what we can do," Kai sighed as the officer headed for his aunt's house. Once the officer was gone, Kai looked over at his friend who was clinging to Bryan's arm, large tears pooling in his eyes. Bryan was patting Tala on the head, staring at Kai.

"How is it that he gets in trouble of some kind no matter what?" Bryan wondered.

"This is Tala we're talking about do you even bother to ask anymore?" Kai sighed.

"You two aren't my friends anymore! You're always mean to me in my time of need! I'm never going to go over there again, I swear it!" Tala protested.

"I doubt after tonight, she's going to want you to," Bryan laughed. "Come on, I'll fix you some hot cocoa you big baby, and then you can tell us how in the world you got her in lingerie, grabbing your ass. We're going to have to tell your father about what a stud you are."

"Shut up! I'm trying to make the images go away!" Tala shouted. "I swear if you tell my father that I was almost molested by an old woman I'll kill you!"

"Yes, yes, come on," Bryan laughed, as Tala continued ushering threats at him. Kai followed behind the two, knowing that this little Christmas incident was going to be talked about in the neighborhood for months to come. Why, he asked couldn't they have a normal life living together. If it wasn't Bryan doing something, it was Tala and his illogical issues. Kai should have known better than becoming friends with the two wily Russians, all early signs had pointed to this. He was certain of it.


	17. Chapter 15

Rim: The first chapter of the new year. I would have had this out sooner...but let's just blame a little thing called dramas no thanks to a certain few people who I'm not going to name, but they know who they are. Yes, so here's the next chapter, though I feel it's more of just a filler than anything else. Perhaps the next chapter will be a lot more tempting to play back and forth with. Thanks to everyone.

_**-----oooooo------**_

_Chapter 15_

The frown between Bryan's brows seemed to slant in further as he dipped his paint brush back in the bucket of paint resting on a wooden stood next to him. Raising his brush back to wall by the entrance to the living room Bryan shook his head hearing the sounds coming from the said room.

Behind him painting the edges of the wall on the stairway, Kenny heard the older male mutter something in what he presumed was Russian. Lifting his eyes to where Bryan stood, he caught Bryan continuing to shake his head, hoping to focus on finishing up the last bit of wall to be completed with the task so he could escape the hell he was put through.

"You know, if you think about something, it makes it easy to ignore," Kenny finally said, breaking the long silence between them that was only interrupted by the music from the living room. Bryan turned his attention to the younger boy, the frown easing from between his brows.

"It would be easier if the only thing in my head wasn't making him shut up," Bryan commented.

"Why don't you try thinking about something else then? Maybe someone important to you, or something you're going to do soon. I know when I need to block out my friends' harebrain suggestions, it always works for me," Kenny suggested, carefully running the brush against the edge so not to splash paint flecks on his clothing.

"It's funny, I was able to tolerate _The Lion King_ soundtrack. I even went along with _The Little Mermaid_ and _Pocahontas_…but damn it, he's in there singing songs from _My Fair Lady_. No straight man, pardon my reference in this, can take this kind of punishment," Bryan stated.

"None taken, you're excused," Kenny chuckled, sitting down his paint brush.

"Has he no shame?" Bryan wondered miserably.

"It's really not so bad," Kenny commented just as Tala hit a particularly high note, causing Bryan's brow to twitch in concurrence. The whole thing was quite amusing for Kenny who did his best to cover the growing smile as Tala continued. "It's not really that bad…it's sort of…"

"Like a cat clawing glass?" Bryan helped, letting his paint brush plop into the paint can. Flecks of paint shot out, splashing the side of the can along with the stool. Bryan made a full turn to look at the boy on the steps. "Yes, you're right, it is. Thank you for agreeing with me."

"At least he's not causing trouble," Kenny offered.

"Worse still, he's going to cause my ears to bleed if he continues with this song."

"It's eventually going to end."

"Before or after I'm dead?" Bryan raised a brow, going over to sit down on the steps. Turning his eyes up towards the younger male a few steps above him, Bryan sighed in relief hearing the song finally end. "My moment of torture has been alleviated for now."

"You shouldn't be so mean. It's not like he does this all the time." Kenny paused briefly, thinking about the red head painting in the other room before he decided to add in an appropriate comment towards the manic red head. "Right, Bryan?"

"Let me put it this way, I was actually normal before I met him. I didn't have to scream at him about trying to toss things out the upstairs window…or himself…or Kai," Bryan sighed, remembering the time Tala fell out of the attic window because he was too damn childish to know when to give in about something. Turning his eyes on Kenny, he found shock and curiosity playing in halfway hidden eyes.

"He nearly threw Kai out a window?" Kenny cocked his head to the side, trying to imagine the vivacious red head doing something of the sort. It wasn't something he would envision

"It's a long story, perhaps one day Kai and I will sit down and let you inside the world of horror we go through with living with Tala. All the stories we have about imprudent and psychotic things he's done will make you think twice towards taking him so lightly."

"With regards to the fact you both have known him longer than myself, I may have no choice but to yield my opinion until further investigation into your friend's mental state," Kenny chuckled.

"You're lucky you can leave here and forget this lapse of sanity. Mind if I come home with you?" Bryan inquired. "All I need is a roof over my head, I can make due with lack of everything else."

"I'm afraid my house can offer you no sanctuary from Tala. I have my own lapse of sanity called a best friend, I can never escape," Kenny said. "Not to mention another friend who would rather spend his time screaming about being the king of dance machines everywhere than sparing the rest of us the embarrassment of being dragged out of arcades kicking and screaming."

"At least you don't live with your lapse of sanity," Bryan grinned, his silvery eyes shining with amusement.

"That's true, but I do have to see him quite often still. It's pretty much the same as if I were to live with him. At least you can escape him at work," Kenny laughed.

"Oh, if only it was that simple. I vote for placing our lapse of sanities together in a house, and moving in together. That way we can return to the land of sensible thinking?" Bryan said, the smile on his face widening, causing Kenny to laugh more. "You're thinking about that aren't you? All you have to do is say the word and we can get it underway."

"No! Besides, I'm not old enough to do that, sir," Kenny voiced humorously.

"A little forgery never hurts anyone," Bryan leaned back, resting against the stairs while looking up at Kenny.

"And my parents?" Kenny raised a humored brow, leaning forward just a little as Bryan placed one paint speckled hand under his chin; his brows coming together in contemplation. "Tell me when you get something I'm going to the bathroom."

"While you're up there, tell Kai to come down so we can discuss this," Bryan laughed, watching Kenny stand up from where he was sitting to make his way up the stairs. Bryan watched the kid's back for a long minute before sitting up with a chuckle.

"The kid is fun to have around, don't you think?" Tala said, having heard the two laughing out in the hallway and came out to investigate. He leaned against the entrance of the living room, his eyes turned to the staircase landing where Kenny had disappeared to.

"I think this is going to be interesting for all involved," Bryan agreed, turning his eyes on Tala only to have the smile on his face immediately drop into a frown as his brows pulled together. "Tala…"

"Huh?" Shifting his line of vision to his friend, Tala cocked his head to the side, blinking. "What's with the look Bryan…?"

"Tala…I'm going to ask this once…and pray I get a normal sensible answer," Bryan exhaled, rubbing his temples feeling a headache forming. "You are painting…right?"

"I'm almost finished the second wall," Tala nodded. "Why?"

"I see…you're almost finished with two walls…so can you inform me on why you are walking around in just your boxers painting…?" Bryan heaved a sigh.

"What? You don't like my ducks? They're awesome!" Tala exclaimed looking down at the black silk boxers with yellow baby ducks patterned on the garment.

"It's sad seeing a grown man act like this. That's besides the point Tala. Why are you just in your boxers painting?" Bryan sometimes really questioned Tala's state of mind. Half the time his friend was a bipolar manic, the other half he was a ten year old kid with a permanent sugar overdose, and on those rare moments when they really needed him to be, he could act his age.

It was no wonder with his behavior that his friend only dated occasionally, despite how Tala always claimed he was saving himself for the right person to come along to have a serious relationship with. Most people in their right mind had the instincts to steer clear of the red head.

"There's nothing wrong with the way I act!" Tala huffed, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Why are you in your boxers painting, Tala?" Bryan repeated, feeling a touch of exasperation slowly beginning to overcome him.

"Well, I see it like this. Those clothes I had on, they were too nice to get paint on them, and all the old clothes I had were too cool to get paint on them. I like these boxers too, but I thought you wouldn't appreciate me painting naked in the living room," Tala said. "So I took off my clothes and put them in the closet until I finish painting. I can always ask my dad to get me another pair of duckies."

"How…appreciative of you to think about not painting nude," Bryan said as his brow twitched. "Did you ever think to ask perhaps Kai or myself for some clothes to paint in?"

"I thought you said you would stop loaning me clothes back in college because I took your favorite outfit and then ended up losing the pants to it while hopping that barb wire fence near the cemetery because of that bet I made with that boy…what was his name again?" Tala thought. "You remember that bet don't you?"

"Unfortunately so," Bryan sighed.

"What was that boy's name? Remember he kept harassing me until we finally made that bet. I wonder whatever happened to him." Tala blinked his brows together in thought of trying to remember his classmate's name.

"Just forget it, put your clothes back on," Bryan waved off as the doorbell rung. "Go, shoo. I don't want people getting the wrong idea seeing you."

"Oh fine," Tala pouted, pushing away from the doorframe to walk back in the living room. Bryan got up from the stairs, just as Tala rushed back into the hallway with wide eyes. "Don't open the door! Pretend we're not home!"

"What are you going on about? You know it's hard to pretend when our car is out in the driveway," Bryan frowned, making his way to the door.

"No! Don't! I beg you don't open the door!" Tala pleaded, falling to his knees and clasping his hands together. "Please Bryan, I promise I'll be good. I promise I won't throw anymore of your plants outside the window or hide them in the closet! I'll be good, just don't answer the door!"

"I'm going to interrogate you later on that," Bryan glowered as he opened the door. Standing outside on the porch was a woman with long dark hair in tight spiral curls. Seeing the young man before her, she gave him a quick look over before brushing past him to enter the house. Tala was by now crawling out the hallway into the living room to hide in the closet. Bryan opened his mouth to say something however decided against it, instead shut the door, turning to the woman who was looking around the hallway disinterestedly.

"This is quite an ugly color for any room, who was the one that picked it out?" the woman said, turning her hazel eyes on Bryan.

"It was a group decision amongst Tala, Kai, and I," Bryan answered, remaining at the door. "We happen to like the color it blends well with the surroundings."

"You have no sense of style anyway," the woman waved off with a shake of her head. "You're just like that man."

"Is that way you're here mo—?" The woman cut the sentence short with a sharp glance, causing Bryan to shut his mouth, inwardly frustrated by this woman he use to be able to call a mother. Since his second year of high school things between him and his mother had progressively been going down this path. It was a bother having her come around, but he also missed spending time with her like when he was in middle school. All in all, he loved his mother though there were moments like this where he questioned why.

"I thought I made it clear I never wanted to hear that word come out your mouth when you address me, Bryan?" the woman scolded. "You will address me by first name."

"I won't," Bryan stubbornly said, walking up to his mother, looking down at her.

"You're just like that man." Making a face, she moved away from Bryan as if the sight of him were too much for her to handle, walking to the kitchen. Bryan followed behind her briefly. "When will you get it through your head that I gave up that minuscule hobby when you were in high school?"

"I'm sorry you feel that way," Bryan said, clenching his jaw as he stopped in the doorway of the kitchen. The woman opened the fridge, looking inside before making a disgusted noise, closing it.

"No wonder you don't have a girlfriend, you don't keep anything to drink in your fridge," the woman complained, taking a seat at the kitchen table.

"I don't have anything you want to drink and secondly I am currently dating," Bryan corrected. The tic in his jaw slowly increased as the woman swung a look at him with slight surprise.

"Oh, someone wants to date you? I guess you're not like that man after all," Bryan's mother blinked.

"Why are you here?" Bryan questioned.

"Don't be a rude child. You were raised better than that," the woman stated. "It must be the influence of who you hang out with. The only one that has some merit is Kai, of course it's only because his grandfather will eventually leave him the entire Hiwatari fortune when he kills over. Speaking of, where are that worthless boy Tala and your semi worthless friend Kai?"

"Why are you here?" Bryan stubbornly repeated, refusing to let the woman do like she always did and tear into everyone in his life that meant something to him. "You don't come visit me unless there's something you want. As much as I enjoy seeing you when you want to let me know you're still around, I do have to finish painting."

"Hm, fine since you're whining. Call your father, I'm tired of him giving me the run around," his mother said, leaning back in the chair to cross her legs.

"I told you last year the same as I'm going to tell you now. I'm not stepping in the middle of this. If you want a divorce from him, then you call him yourself. You know he still loves you," Bryan said, folding his arms over his chest. "Don't you think it's easier to forgive him, than to carry on in this manner?"

"Forgive him?" his mother laughed mockingly. "Why should I even bother to forgive a worthless, sniveling man like him? After the humiliation he gave me, he's lucky that I will even stand to be in the same room for him more than two seconds. You're supposed to be a smart boy, Bryan. How is it that such a ludicrous thought even occurred in your head?"

"I'm not getting in the middle of this. There's no way I'm going to call father just so you can continue having whatever affair you want. I'm not going to be part of hurting him just to make you happy. He still loves you, so why…never mind, why am I bothering. I know no matter how much I beg and plead with you, you're not going to listen anyway. You do what you want even if it means causing everyone else suffering," Bryan said wearily, raking a hand through his hair.

The woman sat in silence for a second, observing him. Uncrossing her legs, she stood from where she sat, smoothing out the skirt she wore. "I can never get you to do anything. No wonder I got tired of raising you, you're a worthless child. What good are you to me, if you won't even do any of the favors I ask you? All you do is whine when I'm around."

"You hardly come around. I can go an entire year without hearing one word from you," Bryan exclaimed as the woman didn't bother listening to him whilst passing back through. Frustrated, he followed behind her back into the hallway. She didn't bother turning around to address him properly as she reached out, placing her hand on the doorknob, turning it.

"I have better things to do. The next time you talk to that man, tell him to stop sniveling, I'm never going back to him, no matter what he believes. Good-bye." Opening the front door, the woman walked out, shutting it behind her. Silence filled the hallway upon the woman's departure; Bryan standing with his hands clenching trying to finding his center once more. Letting out a shaky breath, he allowed his anger to cool as he felt a hand on his shoulder. Turning his head, he found a pair of worried blue eyes.

"Hey…you know…" Tala started his voice soft as he eyed the door to make sure the woman wasn't going to come back into the house. With a huff, his brows dipped into a v; Tala getting a serious look directed at Bryan who wondered if it was going to be an actual serious speech or another one of Tala's out of his head moments. "Listening to her isn't healthy."

"I know, but she's still my mother," Bryan remarked.

"Sometimes, parents don't always know what's best. They aren't always right about the things they decide to do in life, and their kids aren't to blame for it. No child should bear the sins of their parents and be burdened with their issues," Tala commented. "If we were to carry all their sins, we would have no room in striving to be happy."

"Another afternoon special, Tala?" Bryan wondered, a smile curling the ends of his mouth upwards.

"Dummy, it's truth," Tala said, scrunching up his nose. "Why do I have to watch some teenage afterschool special to give you that lesson? Even I know what it's like to be fed up with your parents at some point in your life."

"You drove your mother insane so she had to get rid of you," Bryan teased, watching Tala's eyes widen with indignation. The red head's cheeks puffed out as he shoved Bryan, though it had no affect moving him anywhere.

"See if I ever try to comfort you again!" Tala exclaimed.

"How can you comfort me when you were hiding in the living room closet and left me to deal with her?" Bryan wondered.

"That bitch whore scares me! Last time you left me in the same room with her, she told me that I was a disillusioned idiot who was going to end up going to jail because I would get so sick in the head I would start preying on five year olds!" Tala said.

"Let's hope that it never comes to that limit," Bryan shook his head.

"That's not nice to say!" Tala whined.

"However it's a possibility." The two young men standing in the hallway turned to find Kai coming down the stairs with Kenny and Ian in tow. The brunette had curious, half worried look on his face at hearing some of what was happening on the lower floor from upstairs.

"Kai, are you against me too!" Tala gaped.

"Nobody is against you," Kai assured. "I'm just stating that it's a possibility, but considering that Bryan and I are around, there's not a likelihood we'll let you wander down that path. So you have nothing to fret over."

"Only you can make it sound as if agreeing with that bitch whore isn't your intention," Tala snorted.

"That bitch whore as you call her is my mother," Bryan reminded.

"That hasn't escaped my mind," Tala promised. "I have my utmost respect for you in calling her a bitch whore instead of what is on the tip of my tongue."

"Tala, don't use such derogatory language with minors present," Bryan said, rubbing his brows as he swept an apologetic glance in Kenny and Ian's direction. "You must pardon him, and also pardon what happened. As unexpected as it was, there was no need for either of you to hear it."

"Things happen, it's not your fault," Ian shrugged.

"He has a point," Kenny spoke up. "You shouldn't kick yourself for having something like that happen. From the way it seems she wasn't going to give you much choice with having a confrontation. We understand it wasn't your intention for it to occur. So, don't worry about it."

"Thank you both," Bryan said.

**_-----oooo-----_**

"Kai." The brunette turned his head towards the older male that was sitting beside him staring at the sun set, coloring the sky variations of purple, golden, and crimson, the evening dusk steadily rolling in bringing night. The said male in question blinked, focusing on his student whose brows were lined with thought. The painting was finally finished for the day, leaving Bryan to go on his date for the evening, Tala and Ian heading out to the movies, and Kai with some peace to talk with Kenny. Or rather in their case enjoying the space they were sharing.

"Yes?"

"That woman…was she really Bryan's mother?" Kenny wondered. "I know there are people in the world like that, but you don't really think you would meet them out of the blue like that. Has she always been that way?"

"Not always," Kai shook his head, remembering a time when the woman was actually pleasant to be in the same room with. She had once made him feel warm and invited in the Kuznetsov household years ago. "She changed into that our tenth grade year. You would never believe she use to care about him the way she behaves now."

"It seems that each one of you was drawn to each other for a reason and then the bonds that tied you were strung tighter by the things which have occurred in your lives," Kenny replied.

"You really believe so?" Kai smiled, leaning forward on his knees, his head cocked to the side giving Kenny his full attention. "How so?"

"First we have Bryan whose mother for lack of a better reference is a complete antagonist. Without you and Tala around, he might not have been as strong as he is now to deal with it. Tala has a stepmother so I'm amusing it took him a while to adjust to that. With you and Bryan around things were most likely easier with your support," Kenny explained.

"His parents divorced when he was five, then his mother shipped him to his father when she wanted to live with a lover who didn't want to raise a child. In terms of Bryan's situation, Tala understands the most how much of a drain it can be. It makes them closer than I am to either one at times. I use to joke with Bryan when we were in high school he was going to end up dating Tala just because they act so much like a couple at times. One can not live without tormenting the other," Kai chuckled.

"Rei and Max say that about me and Tyson. We've been close ever since elementary, so it's allowed us to know each other on several different personal levels. Sometimes I know what he's thinking, or there are times where he does just the right thing to make me smile," Kenny reflected.

"It sounds like I already have competition," Kai said, standing up to stretch. Brushing off his pants, Kai pulled open the screen door. "Would you like me to bring something to drink back for you?"

"A coke is fine," Kenny flushed, listening to the door close behind him as Kai walked to the kitchen. Raising his hand to touch his face, sure enough his face was heated by the remark. Smiling wide, he tilted his head up to the sky, the faint twinkling of stars. Though he didn't need assurance that his feelings were understood, it still felt good to know that Kai reciprocated his emotions. Hearing the door reopen, Kenny fought the bubbling sensation sweeping through every part of his body.

"Here," Kai held out the coke as he lowered himself back to the spot he was sitting at.

"Thanks." Taking the coke, he flushed just a little more when his fingers brushed against Kai's. Before being able to pull back, Kai grabbed his hand, pulling him closer. Leaning in, Kai kissed the top of Kenny's hair, releasing his hold on his hand.

"I'm sorry if I make you uncomfortable," Kai murmured.

"When you do things like that…my nerves are like string cheese," Kenny said, his cheeks burning hot with embarrassment.

"When you're being that unintentionally adorable, it's hard not to pass over opportunities like that." A half smile came to Kai's lips as he opened his bottle ofCorona.

"Are you going to be okay to drive me back?" Kenny inquired, eying Kai who took a sip of the beer. He guess even his teacher wasn't immune to a whim of alcohol every now and then.

"One beer won't hurt," Kai assured.

"You're a bad influence, I thought teachers were supposed to advise against drinking and driving to their students," Kenny teased.

"You know better than to drink and drive," Kai informed, taking another sip from his beer. "Secondly, I'm off duty for the summer. I advise anyone whose going to drink and drive to make sure I'm off the road before they do it."

"You're a bad teacher," Kenny laughed, opening his coke.

"Oh, I'm bad? Do I have to remind you that you're the person who caused me to be bad," Kai countered. "If you weren't so cute, then I could keep my good teacher image."

"You can't blame this on me," Kenny voiced. "I'm not the one doing the flirting."

"Perhaps," Kai smiled, tapping his finger against the side of the bottle.

"I'm glad…not just that we can talk like this and joke, but we're comfortable with just things this way," Kenny announced. "I'm grateful that I can just be here beside you. It's the only thing I've wanted since meeting you Kai. I hope that we can continue to enjoy each other's company like this in the future."

"As do I, there's much to learn about the both of us."

"I'm looking forward to learning with you."


	18. Chapter 16

Rim: All right, I've finally decided to sit down with this and write it, after many distracting paths…or rather my insistence to find things to distract me from writing, who can really say when it comes down to it, but my indecisive brain. So here we go the next chapter finally.

_**--oooooo--**_

_Chapter 16_

It was yet another relentlessly hot day in Durham, which was no surprise. In the last few recent years, the temperature only competed with the moderate high of what it was the previous year. This year the weathermen commented it could possibly be the hottest summer in years; quite foolish considering they were more than likely going to repeat this next year as well, and the year after that, and probably the year after that until they realized it was useless to try and predict exactly what mother nature had in store for everyone.

Today's high was-as with the past four days-98 degrees, the kind of weather that was a health hazard for small children and the elderly. Of course it was the kind of heat most people sought out air conditioned places such as the mall, the pool, or even the comforts of their own home to spend their time at. Unfortunately, there were some who decided to brave the weather in an attempt to cure the boredom plaguing them. More unfortunate with such cases, the individual coerces others into being dragged along on a haphazard journey in relief of these symptoms.

Kenny, Max, and Rei happened to be victims of circumstance following along Tyson who would not let them just go back to their homes to get out the heat for the day. The bluenette refused to be at home for the day even if it meant discomfort for his friends. Kenny huffed as he squinted at the sky, hoping to spot a sign of a cloud to shadow the sun for just a few seconds of reprieve. Beside him, Max groaned shuffling along in the heat. Rei sipped on his bottle of water momentarily before passing it to Max who guzzled half the two liter bottle before handing it back to Rei.

"Someone should stop him," Rei spoke up, nodding his head to their 'leader' who was still scouring the streets of downtown Durham for some sort of summer festival, carnival, or live concert to attend.

"At least we could have done this sort of thing on DATA," Max whined. "Kenny, he's your best friend, talk some sense in his head so we can go home."

"Or tell him we can go to the park in the least and find something to do where there are trees, plenty of shade, and a water fountain to drown in," Rei replied.

"Or the mall."

"Or the theaters."

"Or even the pool."

"No," Tyson said, whirling around after hearing their complaints of the weather. "If I have to suffer, you have to come along with me. We hang out at the mall all the time. There is absolutely nothing worth seeing at the theaters, and everyone is at the pool. Do you really want to go there with all those kids screaming?"

"Campus Hill is no more than thirty minutes away by bus, or we can go to the YMCA no more than ten minutes from where we're walking. Pick one, just get us out the heat," Rei said.

"I don't want to go swimming around here. Everyone is around here swimming, I want to do something else," Tyson said, this time around he whined. "Don't you guys feel agitated by the lack of something to do?"

"No, we're hot and sweaty. We're agitated because you made absolute certainty we were going to suffer from your disease. The rest of us can find something to do with the day that doesn't involve much movement," Rei commented.

"You're impossible. Kenny, you're with me in this, right?" Tyson turned his eyes on his friend who had wandered off to stand under the shade of a scraggly tree with Max. "Kenny!"

"It's hot, Tyson," Kenny said, wiping away sweat that tumbled down the back of his neck. "I would rather be at home in my room reading. I was thinking about starting _Paradise Lost_ before you pulled me out on this adventure."

"You're trying to win a losing battle, just give it up and resign yourself to going back home to die of boredom there," Rei said. Watching Tyson slump his shoulders in defeat, he turned the other two boys. "He's ready to throw in the towel."

"Finally!" Max shouted with exhaustion. "Let's get on the next bus and go back home. I have a whole stack load of comics to go through, and I'm wilting away as we speak."

"Sometimes I hate you guys," Tyson sulked.

"And if we didn't love you, we wouldn't have put up with this futile search in the first place," Kenny added in. Tyson glowered at him momentarily before heading for the bus stop across the street from the art council building. Kenny, Rei, and Max followed, thinking about how nice it was going to be to finally be able to be inside.

"Kenny, let's go bug Mister Hiwatari," Tyson thought, his sulking forgotten.

"What?" Kenny blinked, finding Max and Rei's inquisitive eyes on him.

"I say we go over to Mister Hiwatari's house and bug him. It's not like he has anything to do right? You were just over there the other day helping him paint, right? What's the most he could be doing right now besides watching a movie or watering some plants?" Tyson said. "I say we go over to his place and bug him until he throws us out."

"You've been over to Mister Hiwatari's house, Kenny?" Max questioned his eyes wide with interest. "So, does that mean that things are cool with the PE teacher breathing down your neck?"

"They're fine…and yes, I went over to help paint last week," Kenny nodded. "It wasn't a big deal he needed an extra hand so I came over to help out."

"So you and Mister Hiwatari are friends now?" Rei asked before turning his eyes on Tyson. "You better watch out or he's going to take your best friend right from under your nose, Tyson."

"What?" Both Tyson and Kenny exclaimed concurrently.

"Well, if you think about it in the terms of having a similar interest, he's a better friend than Tyson that you can relate to. Not to mention that at least now you're rivaled intellectually, Kenny," Rei stated with a mischievous grin.

"Wait one second, what are you trying to say about me?" Tyson snapped.

"You have the mind of a rock and the will to go with it," Max chimed in, as Tyson made a blind swipe for the blond, who sidestepped out the way. "I'm just telling it like it is."

"That's not funny, you ass," Tyson glared, as they crossed the street, moving towards the bus stop.

"To me, it is," Max laughed.

"You got them started Tyson," Kenny reminded.

"Stop taking their side!" Tyson shouted. "You're supposed to be my best friend."

"You won't have him for long," Rei said. "Though I can imagine all those girls who have been lusting after Mister Hiwatari will be jealous to know that you've become friends with him, not to mention you've also been over to his house, Kenny."

"It's not like I'm going to go around spreading the news. Besides, he's still my teacher and I treat him with the same respect as I do in the classroom," Kenny remarked, though it was not exactly the whole truth of it. Of course, there was no way he could tell Rei about neither his real interest in Kai nor a hopeful wish that his current interaction with his English teacher would increase out of their current almost platonic friendship to one establishing solid mutual attraction.

"Do you talk on the phone with him a lot?" Max asked.

"Not really, he's still my teacher, and older than me, it would be a little odd for us to sit on the phone and talk about anything other than literature," Kenny though, not telling the blond that in fact the other night Kai was forced on the phone by his manic roommate to talk to Kenny.

At first it was a bit awkward not knowing exactly what to say, but after a while a conversation struck up between them lasting a good half an hour to forty minutes Kai ended with mentioning how late it was getting. There was no way he could go into what the conversation was about, or the teasing that crept up every now and then between them. It was certain to give away there was something underlined to the friendship he was unwilling to speak on with anyone other than Tyson currently.

"I guess that makes sense he wouldn't be into the things we like," Max said, walking under the bus stop sign to wait for the bus.

"I still think my idea about going over to his place to bug him is a good idea," Tyson announced.

"Don't you worry the man enough during school months? Do you really think it's going to make his day to see your face at his front door?" Rei sighed. "Give the man a chance to rest his mind at least for a few weeks, Tyson."

"You know, I really hate you," Tyson shot.

"I know, but it doesn't help that you also would be lost without my friendship, Kenny's friendship, and Max's friendship, so suck it up and take the insults with pride." Before Tyson could voice another protest, the squabble was interrupted by the honking of a car horn. Looking around, the four boys discovered a car sitting at a red light, the person in question had their head stuck out the driver's seat, waving rapidly in their direction.

"Does anyone know that person?" Max pointed.

"I've never seen him in my life," Rei shook his head. "What about you Tyson?"

"Nope," Tyson said, before turning his attention to Kenny whose brows were furled together in either confusion or amusement. "Kenny, have you seen that person before?"

"Tala…" Kenny tilted his head to the side, a funny smile rising to his lips as he found the red head leaning more out the window to wave at him. That was of course prior to Bryan-who was in the driver's seat, waiting for the light to change-shoved him back to his side of the car. Tala argued with Bryan, pointing over in the direction of Kenny. Bryan shook his head, continuing to argue with Tala for another few seconds.

"Do you know that guy, Kenny?"

"Yes…in a way," Kenny chuckled, finding the car turn the corner, pulling up to the curb where they waited at the bus stop. Tala climbed over the seat, leaning out the window to grin at Kenny. "Bryan looks like he's going to dump you out the car, Tala."

"What a coincidence to see you downtown at the same time we're passing through. Where are you going, we can give you a lift!" Tala chimed.

"First don't you think you should get back in the passenger seat before Bryan dumps you out the window?" Kenny laughed.

"You're right about that," Bryan grumbled, shoving Tala from over him.

"Bryan! I'm trying to talk here!" Tala protested.

"That doesn't mean you climb on me to do so," Bryan glowered.

"Stop being such a girl. It's not like you have anything to feel on that I would want to," Tala rolled his eyes prior to Bryan smacking him over the head. "Stop hitting me! I can have you arrested for assault and battery!"

"And I'll have you arrested on your little hobby," Bryan threatened.

"Tyson, Max, and Rei, this is Tala and Bryan," Kenny introduced while the two argued. "They're friends of Mister Hiwatari."

"Nice to meet you!" Tala directed his attention away from arguing with Bryan to grin at the three boys with Kenny. "So did you guys need a lift somewhere? It's too hot to be standing out here waiting for the bus."

"We were going home for the day to get out the heat," Kenny remarked. "My friend thought it would be nice if we all baked for the day instead of staying inside where it was cool."

"Oh sure, blame me for it," Tyson huffed, crossing his arms over his chest.

"We do, that's why he said it," Rei replied.

"Nobody asked for your opinion, Rei." Tyson shot the taller Chinese male a look.

"Well, I made sure it was given, Tyson," Rei said coolly, ignoring Tyson's glaring.

"Looks like you have nothing to do?" Bryan questioned, being reminded of the many fights like that he got into with Tala when he was their age.

"That's the basis of it," Kenny shrugged.

"You should come along with us then!" Tala nodded. "Ian was getting bored at our place too, so I told him that we would take him out to Sandy Beach for the day. Why don't you come with us?"

"Are sure that it wasn't more of your idea of wanting to go and just saying that your brother wanted something to do?" Kenny smiled.

"You thought the same thing I did," Bryan said. "But if your parents are fine with it, you're all welcomed to come along."

"My parents are out of town again, so I'm sure they won't mind," Kenny said.

"My brother has been looking for an excuse to get rid of me for the day," Tyson said. "What about you and Max, Rei?"

"It's a miracle if I see my cousins every now and then. Mariah went to Cancun with her boyfriend and his friends for a while, so reaching her is nigh impossible. And Lee decided that he wanted to go back to China for a while to visit our great aunt who is trying to set him up with an arranged marriage," Rei thought. "Or rather it was in disguise of one of his old friends wanting to see him again."

"My mother went to a conference, but I'm sure my dad won't mind if I'm with you guys," Max beamed.

"So we have a unanimous voting that you won't have to worry about us being reported kidnapped, Bryan," Kenny said.

"Cute," Bryan shook his head. "All right then, but just make sure there is a formal phone call before we leave to tell your parents where you're going…for all this concerns."

"Yes sir," the four boys said concurrently with a grin.

"Great! Hop in!" Tala said, sliding back across Bryan into the passenger seat. Kenny opened the backseat passenger door, climbing inside with Tyson, Rei, and Max piling in behind him. Once the door was shut, and the car was moving again, Tala peeped around the seat to look at the boys who stared back curiously-or rather three of them were curious, and one was just amused. "This is going to be awesome!"

"Tala, turn around and stop scaring them before they decide that their lives are in danger," Bryan shook his head.

"So, I'm assuming we're stopping back by your place before we leave?" Kenny said.

"Tala had this urge to go out and buy a bunch of stuff to take with us," Bryan said. "Kai and Ian should be done packing the other stuff in Kai's car. We would be on the road by now if it weren't for a certain someone who I'm not naming."

"Can I help I wanted some new swim shorts?" Tala said, sticking his tongue out at Bryan.

"You needed only one pair…why did you have the urge to by eight pairs?" Bryan wondered.

"Well…that first pair was fine, but then I saw that really nice pair, then there was another pair while I was walking to the register so I had to go back for them. And then those other pairs I saw on the way out were begging me to buy them. Just think, at least I have enough for everyone to have a pair to go swimming in," Tala said.

"That sounds like something you would do," Kenny laughed.

"You must excuse my friend," Bryan sighed, glancing up in the rear view mirror to look at the boys in the back. "He can at times be sensible about things, most times it's a mystery what goes through his head."

"I told you before he's like my friend Tyson," Kenny pointed to the blunette beside him. "They seem to be cut from the same mold."

"Have you been talking about to behind my back?" Tyson asked.

"Always," Kenny grinned.

"You know, when I decide to go to another college when we graduate, you're going to cry about not having my company anymore," Tyson said.

"No I won't, I'll be rejoicing I can have back my sanity," Kenny replied.

"This brings back memories, doesn't it Bryan? Remember when we use to be their age, and you, me, and Kai had talks like that all the time?"

"We still talk like that when you're around. We comment to ourselves how nice to have back pieces of our sanity when you're away. We're really crying inside when we tell you that we'll never split up," Bryan said, shifting his eyes from the road momentarily to find Tala gaping at him. "I don't know why you look so surprise, somewhere in your manic heart you had to have known that."

"Fine, if you and Kai don't love me anymore, then I'll just jump from this vehicle into traffic," Tala whined, pulling on the door handle. Bryan said nothing, continuing to drive whilst his friend persisted with his struggle to throw himself out the door into traffic. A few minutes worth of silence passed in the car before Bryan spoke, glancing over to find Tala pouting as he leaned against the door.

"Are you done throwing your tantrum?"

"Curse you…and your child safety lock," Tala glowered.

"You have child safety locks on the doors?" Tyson said incredulously.

"Safety precaution for him, you never know when he's going to throw a tantrum and verbalize suicide. He's a pain, but he has his use being around sometimes," Bryan said.

"I'll jump out the window if you feel like that then!" Tala whined, just as Bryan flipped the window lock gauge. "Damn you and your window locking abilities. Why won't you let me maim myself? What have I ever done to you to invoke you being this cruel to a wounded soul?"

"You'll recover soon your mania always kicks in about now."

"Not this time! I refuse to be happy anymore!" Tala huffed, slumping against the door even more.

"Yes, yes, you're going to thank me for not letting you maim yourself one of these days," Bryan nodded, turning a corner onto Juniper Street which led to the intersect of Springdale and Glenwood.

"Is this the type of friendship I have to look forward to with Tyson when I'm older?" Kenny inquired amusingly.

"Hey! I keep telling you about those remarks," Tyson warned.

"You might be lucky and he matures from his mania, unlike Tala," Bryan laughed, turning onto Glenwood which led into the community he, Kai, and Tala lived in.

"I've passed this neighbor before," Max said. "My mother has some acquaintances that live like on the next block over. Which house is yours?"

"This one coming up with the kid in the yard," Bryan nodded to the manicured yard Ian was sitting in, talking on a cell phone. Turning into the driveway, the group found Ian saying something into the phone before closing it and standing up. Putting the car in park, Bryan shut off the engine then stepped out the car to let Tala out.

"What took so long?" Ian said.

"Your brother wanted to buy out the store for every pair of swim shorts they had," Bryan shook his head.

"They were nice!" Tala protested. "Besides, the nice old lady at checkout gave me a discount on them."

"That nice old lady was also checking you out," Bryan informed. "She also slipped her number in your bag before we left."

"No way! Are you serious?" Tala shuddered. "Not another old lady! Haven't I suffered enough for one lifetime! Am I cursed or something? What is it that old soap opera ladies are always lusting after me? Do I remind all of them of husbands that died trying to escape marriage with them?"

"Well just think, the older the lady, the more money she's bound to have and leave you if you set aside your standards," Bryan teased.

"Are you insane? I am not hooking up with an old lady ever! I'd rather die a virgin!" Tala exclaimed.

"Should we question that?" Rei whispered to Kenny.

"I dunno…sometimes it is best not to," Kenny shook his head.

"Well your loss on being rich by the time you're twenty-seven. One day perhaps they'll get tired of wanting to grope you, in the meantime we'll just keep saying how lucky you are," Bryan smirked, patting Tala on the head.

"Never! I'll never give in!" Tala cried, scrubbing the tears from his eyes.

"Ian, go in and tell Kai that we'll need a few more towels, we have some extra heads going with us to the beach," Bryan snickered, motioning towards Kenny and the others.

"Ah, Kenny, you're coming along too? Are those the friends you were telling me about the other day when you were over?" Ian smiled. "I'm Ian Papov, Tala's younger brother. So which one of you is the DDR king I heard about?"

"That would be me!" Max beamed, raising his hand.

"We're going to have to hang out together so I can see your legendary skills on the machine," Ian laughed.

"Don't get him started!" Tyson shuddered. "It'll go right to his head and then he'll insist that he has to outdo everyone at Palace Point again, risking us being thrown out for causing a disturbance."

"It wasn't such a big deal," Max waved off.

"In your head it wasn't, people talked about us for weeks when we came in," Rei exhaled.

"You guys are overreacting," Max scoffed.

"I'll go in and tell Mister Hiwatari that we need some more towels. You two keep arguing with Max," Kenny replied, moving to enter the house. Assuming that Kai was upstairs, the teen head up to where Kai's bedroom was, knocking on the door.

"Come in." Turning the knob, Kenny pushed the door open, only to find his teacher wearing a pair of cargo shorts while tying his hair back into a messy ponytail. The absence of shirt made the teenage boy pause and gawk at the most perfect set of chest and abs he had ever seen in his life. Kai's eyes fell on his student who had coincidentally turned three shades darker than Tala's hair gaping at him. For some reason perhaps subconscious, he couldn't help but want to react to Kenny's expression. "Kenny, come in and close the door."

"Um…I…" Kenny stammered, dropping his eyes to the ground.

"Come in," Kai urged, amusement playing on his lips.

"I think I should just wait outside," Kenny forced out, the words squeaking at the ends.

"Come in," Kai coaxed. "There's nothing to be embarrassed about."

"If I move, my legs are going to give out," Kenny stated.

"Then I'll just come to you." Kenny heard the soft footfalls as Kai walked up to him. The brunette's eyes fluttered halfway shut when a hand slipped under his chin, nudging his face upwards to meet the older male's eyes. "Did you come to visit?"

"I was…" Kenny stammered.

"Just relax, it's not like I'm going to attack you," Kai chuckled.

"Then can you put on a shirt?" Kenny flushed darker.

"Is it making you uncomfortable?" Kai frowned, moving away from Kenny to where his tank top was draped on the edge of the bed.

"I can't concentrate when all I see is your chest. I hope you know it's very distracting, but I can also appreciate just how nice a view it is…but really distracting," Kenny babbled. "And considering the type of thoughts circulating through my head…you're a bad teacher."

"How am I bad when you're the one with the thoughts?" Forgetting the shirt, Kai came back over to where Kenny stood leaning in pressing his forehead to Kenny's to lock eyes with the boy. One of Kai's brows was arched as he pinned the younger male in place with his stare.

"Too close," Kenny complained quietly, his heart pounded in his chest, causing his breath to shorten. "Move back."

"When you're being unintentionally cute again?" Kai murmured, brushing aside hair. A pair of wide eyes remained captive by his stare.

"You're flirting again…" Kenny pointed out.

"I guess I am. You always put me in a position where I have no choice but to flirt with you," Kai admitted. "The more I'm around you I want to see you look this cute."

"That's not fair, Kai. You're not letting me counter. You do things that make me…" Kenny's sentence fell off, apprehensively leaning in closer. The pounding of his chest resonated into his stomach; butterflies appear to rage war on his insides slowly knotting themselves.

"That makes you what?" Kai murmured.

"Stop teasing me," Kenny whispered.

"Hey Kai!" Tala's voice from the bottom of the stairs pulled the two away, Kai going over to pick up his tank top, putting it on. "Kai! Hey, answer me! Kai, I know you hear me calling you! You better not be up there doing strange things to Kenny!"

"What?" Passing Kenny, with an indistinctive study, the older male leaned over the railing to look down at Tala who was staring up with a deep set frown. "Why are you calling my name like that?"

"Where's Kenny?" Tala interrogated.

"In the linen closet getting out some towels," Kai rolled his eyes, sensing Kenny at a quick, soundless walk behind him to go down the hall near the bathroom which contained towels and other bathroom items.

"Kenny!"

"Tala, really, what do you expect?" Kai sighed. "Now tell me why you're screaming at me so imprudently to answer you."

"First I want to make sure that Kenny's all right!" Tala negotiated. "I don't trust you."

"Excuse me?" Kai blinked.

"You heard me, I don't trust you. How long has it been since you've been around a hot young body that you didn't want to jump?" Tala questioned.

"You have no couth whatsoever. I refuse to go into that conversation with you ever." Kai massaged his temples, feeling a headache approaching.

"Give me proof that Kenny's all right!" Tala demanded.

"This isn't a hostage situation, Tala." As Kai was finishing his sentence, Kenny was already making his way back with a bundle of large towels in his arms. "Kenny, please state for Tala that I haven't taken your liver or kidneys out up here."

Kenny was thankful that this little interruption gave him a chance to calm himself and regain his composure as he approached the railing. Leaning over it slightly, he dumped the towels from his arms to where Tala was standing. "Here Tala, catch."

"Huh?" Opening his arms, Tala caught the bundle.

"Now will you please tell me what's going on?" Kai commented, shifting a grateful look to Kenny for his quick timing.

"You're off the hook this time," Tala said.

"Just tell me what you're going on about?" Kai shook his head, ignoring the response.

"Oh yeah, you have this old guy outside in this beat up car asking to speak with you. I don't usually say this about people, but the car definitely matches its owner. The thing looks like it went through a few hurricanes and tornados," Tala stated.

"An older man that's not my grandfather asking to speak to me?" Kai was clearly at a lost for who could possibly be visiting him as he descended the staircase with Kenny following closely behind.

"Are you getting drunk at bars and giving out your number to old men again, Kai?" Tala wondered when Kai was at the bottom of the landing. The red head received a frosty scowl his way from his friend not to say another word as Kai headed out the front door. "Fine, just cut me why don't you. It's not like I'm going around handing out our address."

"You really have no couth, Tala," Kenny asserted, continuing to head out behind Kai.

"You know…the minute I find out what that means, I'm going to get my revenge on you both," Tala pouted, following the petite brunette from the house.

Kai who was standing at the banister on the porch when the two came out behind him was inwardly groaning with annoyance to find Vice Principal Balcov in his front yard with a stern expression of interrogation which might have once been used during the Spanish Inquisition on his face. Kai had no idea why the man sought to check up on him during summer break, but the current scene of a bunch of children who happened to attend the same school he taught-not to mention the exact same boy he 'favorably' had reinstated from suspension was coming out of his house-deemed trouble of all sorts even if this might have been a mass coincidence.

"Vice Principal Balcov, I didn't know you lived this way. I thought you lived on the other side of town. What is it I might be able to do for you?" The first rule of playing off any guilt was to deny there was anything to be guilty for. Of course Kai had no reasons to be guilty. It wasn't against the law to have people over his house, even if they did go to his school…and were underage boys. Okay, so perhaps in another situation he would be guilty of it, but really, it wasn't as if he had them running naked in his lawn while filming it.

The older man's steely gray eyes shifted to Kenny who was standing beside Tala, who was still thinking about what an ugly car the man had and wondering just how many centuries the man had been roaming around Earth in the thing. The Vice Principal's eyes intently studied Kenny thoroughly before moving back to Kai.

"Mister Hiwatari," the man finally spoke.

"Yes sir?" Kai answered.

"Out of a bit of curiosity, isn't that child the same one you defended when he was disrespectful to Mister Parker not long ago?" the vice principal questioned.

"Yes sir." The second rule of playing off guilt was to truthfully answer any questions that came. If he attempted to cover up the obvious, the man would be more suspicious than he was already.

"Out of curiosity, I would like to know how he came about knowing where you stay."

"Of course, I have nothing to hide." Which was not really true since he was interested in the brunette standing beside him by his housemate; the other one remained by the cars with the other boys, witness to this show down. "He acquired my address from my housemate to return a book to me he borrowed in order to study for a test."

"And how did he acquire your number?" The vice principal rose a challenge brow Kai brushed off, not in the least intimidate by the older man. He had no reason to become apprehensive over this diminutive matter.

"I gave my number to his parents when I went to his house to explain the situation concerning that incident Coach Parker insinuated as a larger conspiracy, having Mister Shinoda suspended from school. I expect Mister Shinoda attained my number from his parents," Kai responded.

"And why is he over here now?"

"He came to visit," Kai said coolly. "Much like you stopped by yourself, Mister Balcov. I assume that it's still legal in this country to do that without being suspected of anything?" Kai tilted his head defiantly to let the man know there was no way he would stand to be bullied without solid evidence of some sort of 

wrongful act taking place. Seeing the man's eyes harden with indignation, the vice principal was about to open his mouth to speak when a young man about the age of Kenny with a head of silvery-blue hair pulled back in a ponytail stuck his head out the window looking agitated.

"Uncle Boris, I'm going to be late, hurry up," the boy yelled out the window.

"One second—" Boris turned his attention to the boy who had his quite handsome face scrunched up with impatience.

"NOW. If I'm late for practice, I'm never going to hear the end of it," the boy said, slipping his head back in the window.

"It seems my nephew isn't going to let me finish this conversation," the vice principal said, turning his attention back to Kai. "I shall take my leave now, but remember Mister Hiwatari I'm going to have a sharp eye on you next school year. Don't think you're going to be able to slack and do what you feel like. If you give me any indication of mistrust or abuse of power, I shall take it upon myself to discipline you on it. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes sir, you've made your point loud and clear," Kai said curtly. "I'm sure I won't give you a reason to come poking around to discover something."

"Good that we understand each other." The vice principal turned from Kai, swiftly walking back to his car that was parked on the curb. The group watched the man climb into the car, saying something to the boy who chose not to pay attention to him as the vice principal started the engine and drove off. When the car was gone, Tala walked up to his friend who had a sour look on his face.

"That old guy needs to be laid…do you really think that was his nephew in the car? That cute was too cute to be related to him, don't you think?" Tala scratched his head. "Well, I guess it's no use worrying about that, the only cure for this is to take it on the road and have a good time."

"Tala has a point," Kenny said.

"I'm not going to let him worry me," Kai shook his head.

"The old man has a lot of balls though," Tala commented, clasping his hands behind his head. "To call you out like that with no proof, that was a ballsy move."

"Language, Tala," Kai chided.

"Yes, I'm sorry mother, sorry," Tala chimed.

"Close the door and lock it," Kai shook his head, descending down the stairs.

"Mister Hiwatari! I want to ride with you!" Tyson said, bounding up to the man.

"Heaven help me…" Kai sighed.

"Hey, what's that suppose to mean?" Tyson frowned.

"See Tyson, I told you," Rei said.

"Shut up!" Tyson retorted to his friend.

"Boys," Kai started. "Whoever needs to stop, should stop."

"Yes sir," Tyson and Rei said concurrently though were glaring at each other regardless of agreeing.

"This is going to be a long day," Kai smiled. "I can see that now."

_**--oooooo--**_

Rim: And another nice little chapter turned out. Surprising that I spent a couple of days shuffling this along slowly when I tend to decide to do a one swoop kill. But I like this chapter it shows a slow changing pace with Kenny and Kai's current situation as friends to one where perhaps Kai is learning that he actually does like the kid more than he thought. I think that's my main point of this chapter, and adding in another little obstacle on the dirty road path of attraction. I wonder what next chapter should be. Anyone have any suggestions feel free to give me one.


	19. Chapter 17

Rim: After being in such a rut for the past few months considering writing, I think it's safe to say that I've managed to dig out at least one of my hands for some work. I still feel as ruddy as ever, but it's a start from where I was. Thanks to everyone for continuing to follow this story and support me.

**_--oooooo--_**

_Chapter 17_

North Carolina was known to have nice beaches; of course for some reason that day, Sandy Beach seemed more attractive than usual. When Kenny was younger, and his parents brought him to the beach, he had always thought it held a mystical atmosphere welcoming people. Even now, years later, Kenny still felt that same feeling from his childhood. He could never put his finger on it, but the beach definitely drew people from all around.

Glancing out over the area, he leaned forward, his chest pressing against his drawn up knees, as the sound of seagulls screeching above mixed with the roar of the frothy water splashing against the edge of the beach every now and then with the coming and going of the tide. The brilliant white sand around him absorbed the blaring heat beating down on the beach; the smell of the salt water roamed the air whenever a light breeze passed through. It definitely was the perfect day for people to get away from the city to have fun.

Briefly listening to a couple a few feet away chattering on about something, his eyes went down the beach to where Max and Ian were dashing back and forth with super soakers attacking Rei and Tala. The ends of Kenny's mouth curved upwards into an amused smile at the fact that his two friends were treating the older red head as if he were one of them. Then again, when Tala tended to act like he was still a kid it was easy to forget he was more than six years older than them.

Somewhere about an hour ago, Tyson had gone missing with a group of girls to play volleyball. The bluenette had given his friend a giant grin saying that he was finally lucking out when the girls had shyly came up to ask him if he wanted to join in their game. Bryan had gone missing also, Tala briefly mentioned a while ago that 'the whore was probably on the prowl' and for Kenny not to bother himself worrying if Bryan was getting in trouble.

"Are you still sitting here?" Kenny looked up to find Tyson flopping down on the large towel beside him, opening the plastic cooler filled with ice to snag a Coke from the bottom, putting the lid back on the cooler, Tyson popped open the can, taking a long gulp of it.

"I thought you were off in your happy paradise?" Kenny questioned.

"I came back to check on you," Tyson commented, pulling the can from his lips to eye Kenny. "Why don't you come play volleyball with us? Two or three of the girls found you cute."

"I'm a poet not an athlete," Kenny shook his head. "You know I don't do well with sports."

"Liar," Tyson said. "You can do anything you want. You just choose not to. Come on, and stop sitting here like an old person reminiscing about how life used to be. Leave that to old people like Mister Hiwatari."

"You would be skinned if he heard that," Kenny laughed.

"Well he's not around now is he? Wait, speaking of…where is Mister Hiwatari anyway? Don't tell me he left you sitting here alone so he can go be hit on by some red heads or something?" Tyson leaned back on one palm as he tilted the soda back to his lips.

"Kai isn't like that," Kenny said.

"Kai?" Tyson blinked, removing the can from his lips to give his friend a sideways stare. "Oh, so you're on a first name basis with him now? So it seems your relationship with him is moving along pretty nicely."

"A first name basis doesn't mean much," Kenny shrugged. "We're friends, so it's okay to use first names."

"Friendship isn't what you've been trying for all this time," Tyson stated. "You can be shy and cautious all you want, but there are people who would take him away if they got the chance. You have to assert your relationship with him more. Has he made a move to kiss you?"

"It's not that simple, Tyson," Kenny said, lowering his voice so they would not be overheard. "I'm still his student and he's still my teacher. Even if we have some attraction, it would be illegal for him to date me now."

"A kiss and dating are two things. You can be kissed by anyone without dating them. You can substitute a date for a kiss anytime. When you date, it doesn't have to mean you like that person, but you don't just kiss someone you have no feelings for. It usually doesn't work that way. Then again, if you watch enough soap operas than that throws things off balanced, of course those aren't reality, so we can just throw them out."

"Only you could associate my life to soaps." Giving Tyson a sideway's stare, Kenny gave his head a small shake. "I understand what you're trying to say, but still Tyson…we both have morals. I have to respect his."

"His morals are ancient," Tyson snorted, taking more swigs from his coke. "Does he think you're going to just hang around forever without some assurance that—"

"Just being with him is enough assurance for me. When the time comes, he will give me as much assurance as he's been holding back…at least that's what I hope." For a brief second, trepidation flooded his mind towards his relationship with Kai. Would they still be together when Kenny graduated high school, being ready to have an open relationship with his teacher? Or would this be a passing phase in both of their lives? Would Kai find someone his own age to date, leaving Kenny with no other choice than to give him up? The future was always such an uncertain thing, even more so with this sort of situation.

"You never know where you will end up a half of year or year from now," Tyson commented, mirroring the fear turning Kenny's insides to an arctic playground. Tyson pushed himself up from where he sat, looking down at the brunette whose eyes lowered to the sand. "Morals or no morals, now is the most important time for you to claim him as yours. It's always a risk thinking nobody is going to walk up and steal him from under your nose."

"I keep telling you it is not that simple," Kenny voiced.

"You keep telling me that morals are holding you back. When it's more so his morals are the ones putting space between you. I don't want to break up your happy feelings, but don't you think that he's using that as an excuse not to be directly involved in whatever you have? He's a man, every man has 

needs. Just because he's a teacher doesn't mean he's an exception to the rule. Teachers are as human as we are. Even they have needs that must be met," Tyson stated.

"Kai isn't the type of person who…" Kenny bit his lip to stop himself from saying 'would cheat on me' because at the moment, there was no established relationship holding them to those words. He knew Kai did not consider him a boyfriend yet. What they had was only an understanding there were feelings between them all.

"I don't want you to be hurt, Kenny in the end," Tyson said softly. "I've only wanted you to be happy…when I found out about your feelings for him I thought maybe it was a good thing."

"You've told me all this before Tyson." Kenny looked up towards his friend who was walking across the sand to a trash bin stationed several feet away.

Pushing himself up from the sand, Kenny followed behind his friend. Watching Tyson dump the empty can into the bin, Kenny noted the slight slump of shoulders in the bluenette's posture. Moving to Tyson's side, Kenny tilted his head up to find Tyson's eyes smoldering with whatever thoughts were in his head.

"Tyson…"

"Do you want to take a walk with me?" Tyson asked, shifting his line of vision at Kenny.

"Weren't you going back to finish your game with those girls?" Kenny blinked.

"I'm not feeling up to it right now, I think I'll just walk around for a little while, do you want to come with me?" Tyson shook his head, gazing out towards the water now.

"Sure, come on." Sensing that Tyson was didn't want to be alone Kenny grabbed his best friend's wrist, tugging him along. Automatically Tyson followed along with his friend. The two of them walked in silence for some time as the cluster of people thinned out the further they went. Overhead the sound of seagulls screeched, every now and then diving towards the beach for bits of trash and food people carelessly tossed aside.

"Kenny," Tyson said finally breaking the silence as they approached a deserted area of the beach surrounded by white sand unpolluted with trash. For some strange reason whilst walking, Kenny had a feeling Tyson was leading them to this area. "Let's stop and rest over there."

The area was sparsely populated with high grassy reeds swaying lightly in the occasional breeze. Several small dunes of sand piled up around the dune of smooth white rocks shaped by high tides that hit the area from time to time. The rocks overlooked a shallow pond of clear blue water many miniscule fish darted every which way in. The two teens carefully climbed up onto the pile of rocks, stretching out to stare up at the overhead sky.

"This area doesn't seem to change no matter how old we grow. How many people do you think know about this area?" Tyson said.

"Possibly some adventurous kids looking for trouble," Kenny smiled, thinking back to those same circumstances leading him and Tyson to finding this area, and the small cave ten minutes from this area Tyson had insisted to explore when they were nine. "I wonder if the cave is still there or if by chance the tides have flooded it by now."

"Let's go check in a few minutes," Tyson said, turning his head to Kenny who was still staring up at the sky. "Hey Kenny?"

"Yes?" Kenny turned his face to Tyson.

"Remember when we first found this spot when we were kids and how you were curious to see if I could do as I said and catch all the little fish in the water?"

"You managed to catch one fish before I told you to let it go," Kenny reminisced. "You told me that we should get a fire going so we could eat your hard work."

"And you wouldn't let me," Tyson chuckled. "What about now? Can I start a fire and catch us some fish?"

"If we head back, we can get some food," Kenny replied avoiding the question.

"We should have brought some food with us," Tyson thought.

"Why are we this far out anyway? Trying to confess to me that you want to be gay now?" Kenny teased, yet his humor tapered off noting the serious eyes focused on him. Sitting up quickly feeling a blush color his cheeks, Kenny looked away from Tyson who was now sitting up also. "That isn't why…you…really brought me out this far is it, Tyson?"

"There's something I want to say to you without anyone overhearing us," Tyson admitted, though gave no indication that he was about to confessing feelings to Kenny.

"Tyson—"

"You know that I'm going to be beside you through thick and thin, don't you? And that no matter what path you take, I'll always be backing you up. We've been best friends for years, so there's never been a secret held between us, or nothing we couldn't say to each other on equal grounds," Tyson said, cutting off whatever Kenny had been about to say. Closing his mouth, Kenny found Tyson's gaze comb over the water in front of them.

"I know," Kenny managed to finally say. "I've been grateful to have discovered your friendship some people never find friendships like ours ever. I'm grateful you've remained at my side all this time growing up. Your opinion means the more to me than any other person I know. You always seem to know what I want to say before I say it."

"I knew a long time ago that I would not care going the distance for you," Tyson smiled. "What I'm trying to say is that…I love you, Kenny."

"I-" Kenny didn't know what to say towards this confession, all he could do was stare wide eye at the teen who sat next to him calmly staring out over the water. Did Tyson want him to take his feelings into regard and give up Kai because there was no chance for the teacher and student to be together right now? Could Kenny do something of the sort after coming so far with Kai?

"Don't take it the wrong way, Kenny," Tyson eventually said, seeing the inner turmoil of his best friend. "I'm not saying I love because I want to be with you."

"Then why did you say it?" Kenny remarked.

"Don't you love me in return?" Tyson blinked.

"I do…but…as a friend…like a brother I do," Kenny stammered.

"In what way did you think I meant it?" Tyson leaned over lightly ruffling Kenny's hair. "I love you like family. And family will always worry about you above all. I guess…I've just been feeling a little jealous every now and then. It's like…he's taking you away from me and he doesn't care. You were mine first…I don't want to lose you. And if I do, I want him to take care of you and watch out for you so I don't have to go out of my mind."

"Is that what you've been thinking all this time? Why you keep insisting that I step out of the boundaries and take a chance?" Kenny asked.

"I know how you feel about him. I know you love him more than me now," Tyson confessed.

"Tyson, my feelings for him and for you are different," Kenny leaned over, resting his head against Tyson's shoulder. "I could never compare them in anyway. And I promise you that no matter what happen, I will always turn to you for help. You're like family after all…you're my brother, so don't forget that."

"Thanks for reassuring me," Tyson said, ruffling Kenny's hair again. "So, now that I've helped you get together with your crush, how about you work on finding a nice young lady for me to rant to about Mister Hiwatari having the morals of an eight hundred year old man?"

"He's going to skin you, I swear it," Kenny chuckled. The two sat there for a while talking before realizing that they should get back in case everyone was looking for them. Getting up from the rocks, the two climbed down, heading back towards the other beach goers, all the while conversing over plans to find a girl for Tyson or any random topic which strayed across their path. Finally reaching the site of where their things were, they found Kai sitting on the blanket eating a sandwich. Auburn eyes flickered over curiously to them when he spotted them.

"Hey, I want a sandwich too, I was starting to get hungry," Tyson chimed.

"Help yourself," Kai offered, waving a hand towards another cooler that was filled with food. Digging into the said cooler, Tyson pulled out a chicken salad sandwich in a plastic wrapper before heading off. "Well I have a game with some pretty girls who are waiting around for me. I'll see you guys in an hour."

"I guess nothing really can keep him down for long," Kenny smiled, seating himself beside Kai who raised a brow. Kenny shook his head a little in amusement. "He was worried."

"About?"

"You being an eight hundred year old man," Kenny said.

"Remind me to skin him when I get my hands on him," Kai frowned, as he finished off his sandwich.

"Don't skin him too much, I don't know what I would do without him," Kenny said. "So where did you get yourself off to for a while?"

"I went for a walk around the beach, the same as you two seemed to have done," Kai replied.

"We went to talk on the other side of the beach near this cave we found when we were kids," Kenny answered. "He was feeling down, so we had a small talk."

"And this talk involved me being an eight hundred year old man? I must say that I'm beginning to be perturbed over your conversations about me. Will I have to make sure the both of you aren't allowed to sit together in another one of my classes for fear of conspiracies against me?" Kai said, looking down at the brunette laughing beside him. "Laughter is not helping your case Mister Shinoda."

"It's nothing to worry about. He just…" A slight flush tinted Kenny's cheeks briefly as he went on. "He worried that he was going to lose me to you down the road."

"So, I was correct in assuming he has feelings for you?" Kai wondered.

"It's not like that," Kenny shook his head. "We both agreed that we love each other like brothers. He was worried that I would end up…hurt. I know you would never do something like that. He just wanted to make sure that he could trust you with my heart."

"I would never do anything to make you cry intentionally," Kai assured.

"I know you wouldn't," Kenny stated. "He just wanted to make sure. That's the type of person Tyson is. I'm grateful to have him as my best friend."

"You can assure him I will not do anything in any way to inflict pain on you," Kai said. "So he no longer needs to conspire against me."

"He wasn't conspiring," Kenny laughed.

"He called me an eight hundred year old man. I take great offense in that," Kai voiced.

"He only called you that due to your morals," Kenny blurted out.

"My morals?" Kai's brows shot up with inquiry. "What do my morals have to do with being an eight hundred year old man?"

"You have morals of an eight hundred year old man? I knew there was something abnormal about you." The two looked up to find Tala had wandered over near them. Bright blue eyes studied Kai momentarily before moving to Kenny. "I bet it's because he won't admit that he wants to do more with you."

"Shut your mouth now," Kai warned, turning his eyes towards the other people in vicinity of them. Nobody seemed to be paying them any mind; Kai sighed with relief as the red head flopped down on the towel, setting aside his super soaker to grab a drink out of the cooler.

"Well it's true," Tala snorted, popping the top of a Mountain Dew. "It seems even Kenny's friend is wondering whether you're going to keep eyeing him from your rocking chair or make a move."

"I'm not having this conversation with you, Tala," Kai muttered.

"Oh. Why not? Because you don't want Kenny to know that you indeed have the morals of the saint you are not. Come on, you're more of a sinner than Bryan is, and Bryan is a straight whore when it comes to 

relationships. I don't have to remind you how much of an issue we had when you were going out with Masefield," Tala scoffed with a roll of his eyes.

"I'm warning you Tala, leave it alone," Kai ordered.

"Or you're going to what? Try to lock me out the house again?" Tala blinked unfazed at the threat. Turning his attention to Kenny who was listening to the two argue Tala gave Kenny a sympathetic shake of his head. "Your teacher use to be a naughty one when he was in college. Once Bryan and I caught him in an empty classroom on the teacher's desk doing things he shouldn't have been doing. Everyone has always figured he was the good boy, but don't let him fool you."

"Tala!" Kai exclaimed.

"Bet you thought nobody remembered that, did you?" Tala said. "We always told you that screwing around with Brooklyn would mess up your so called morals. And now you're trying to be a saint and act like there aren't things you want to do with someone who wants a real relationship with you."

"He's a minor," Kai hissed.

"And he's your student, and you're his teacher. Yes, we heard this argument several times, but are we forgetting. He's right here, have you asked him if he minds that at all?" Tala said, pointing to Kenny.

Drinking his Mountain Dew in three gulps, Tala stood up grabbing his super soaker. "You've been discussing everything on your own, maybe it's time you stop being a martyr and discuss your relationship with him. It's not one sided anymore, try to keep that in mind, Kai. He's not going to wait around forever for you to shed the skin of that eight hundred year old man you've tried fitting in. I'm going back to my game now."

Running off, Tala left Kenny in the company of a very agitated Kai. Studying the dual haired bluenette for a long minute, Kenny decided to give him time to cool down. Reaching into the cooler, Kenny pulled out a chicken salad sandwich. Removing the plastic wrapper from the sandwich, Kenny took a bite of it, allowing the silence to settle between him and Kai. By the time Kenny was halfway done with his sandwich, he heard Kai clear his throat. Shifting his eyes to the older male, he found Kai's attentions on him; his teacher running a hand through his hair.

"I'm sorry that, you had to hear what Tala said," Kai apologized.

"I don't mind," Kenny shrugged. "I'm already over the information that you and that man had nothing but a sexual relationship. I'm not asking that out of you. I'm okay with just being near you. I can worry about…that aspect of the relationship later. But Tala has a point."

"What point?" Kai frowned.

"We're past trying to figure out how each other feel. You have accepted my feelings haven't you? I want to accept your feelings on things. So it's okay to confide in me towards our relationship. You can trust me," Kenny smiled.

"A teacher isn't supposed to have thoughts about their students," Kai shook his head.

"Teachers are only human like the rest of us. Let's put it like this, if we give and take, there's about eighteen months -not counting holidays- of school that I have left before I go to college. There's a year 

and four months left before I'm of legal age and about seven months after that before graduating," Kenny analyzed.

"I understand what you're saying, but you have to realize," Kai started.

"That if someone at school other than Tyson were to find out we were involved more than teacher and student, you would lose your job, possibly be brought up on charges, and not allowed to teach ever again. I've taken that into consideration. I told you I'm fine just being able to be near you. We can spend time at your house on the weekends, holidays, and summer vacation. You don't have to treat me any different in school I would prefer that you were allowed to continue teaching," Kenny interrupted.

"You've thought it through," Kai murmured, contemplating why it was always Tala who brought out these sorts of important talks between him and Kenny. If Kai didn't know any better, Tala was indeed cleverer than what Bryan or himself gave the red head credit for.

"Yes, I have, and I'm discussing it with you now. You told me that there's much to learn about each other. It doesn't have to stop because you're a teacher. I don't even mind when you flirt with me like you tend to do. I guess what I'm trying to say is that…I would rather you show me how much you like me. I'm reassured by it without physical means. It's like an 'I love you'." Kenny took a short breath to allow everything to sink in.

"There's no reason we shouldn't be able to have a mature relationship, is there?" Kai inquired to Kenny whose eyes seemed to light up behind the mass of hair.

"No there shouldn't be," Kenny grinned.

"Then it's settled," Kai smiled. "You're making your teacher feel worst about being seduced, you know that you little imp?"

"You forgot one thing, Kai."

"What's that?" Kai blinked trying to think of something he missed.

"I seduced you while you're off duty, so I have no reason to feel guilty," Kenny announced, finishing off his sandwich.

**_--oooooo--_**

Rim: I've finally gotten that little hump out of the way, so now there's an established, mutual point towards where this relationship is standing. I'm sorry that Kenny and Kai aren't giving everyone the romantic quality they need…they're being stubborn. Perhaps by chapter twenty-four or twenty-five there's some development along those lines, if not then everyone can get enough during the college arch.


	20. Chapter 18

Rim: Yes, I know it's taken me forever to get this chapter out. First I lost the entire story, then gladly found back up chapters up to fourteen, then it's been a hassle between studying for my certification exam later this month and working on this chapter when my ADD doesn't settle in. But I've finally got the work done. The chapter's a little scattered in areas, please bear with me and my collapsible thoughts.

**_-----oooooo------_**

_Chapter 18_

Kai's eyes wandered from one novel to the next resting on the custom made cherry shelves in the comfortable little study. To his delight, many of the books filling those shelves were novels that had long gone out of print whilst he was a child; more than a quarter of the bound volumes were books he had never heard about, perhaps written during his grandfather or father's time. For anyone who was a book connoisseur as he was, those wonderful pieces of art excited him. Those books were part of someone's history, of feelings that the author strove to get across to his or her reader. He nostalgically remembered many summer days and rainy afternoons curled up by window becoming lost in those intimate sessions of the author's heart.

Moving away from one set of books on a different shelf, his eyes seemed to light up as he picked up a book from a lower shelf reading the title: _Seasons Between Numbers_. That book definitely brought back memories he could not believe he had ever let drift to the back of his mind. That book held the most meaning for him than any other book. That book spoke to him in a way he had never had anything call out to him. He could quote that book perfectly now for as many times as he went to the library to read it growing up.

Kenny raised his head from where he was scribbling down words into a black journal –when he no longer heard Kai moving amongst the book shelves of his father's study –to find his teacher examine a navy hard covered book with gold writing inscribed on the spine. Kenny watched Kai's eyes soften, running a hand gently over the book; the ends of his sensual mouth lifting a small smile of remembrance.

Setting aside his pen, Kenny allowed himself to enjoy the view of such an open look. Though Kai was remarkably handsome on his own, looks such as this one his teacher displayed reminded the young teen of what true beauty appeared when one didn't try for it.

"This brings back memories," Kai voiced, suddenly looking over in Kenny's directions as he held up the book for Kenny to read the title.

"You read it often I assume?" Kenny questioned, getting up from the plush, swivel chair settled at his father's mahogany, polished desk to make his way over to where Kai stood.

"Quite so," Kai chuckled, turning the book back to him. "One summer found this book in my close company twelve times before I knew it."

"Twelve times in one summer?" Kenny blinked incredulously. "The most I've ever read a book repeatedly in a short time period has been five. I've only read half of the books in this library thus far, the one you're holding I haven't come across yet. Is it any good?"

"I wouldn't have read it twelve times if it wasn't," Kai smiled. "It struck a cord of recognition in me. I turned to this book many times for answers when I was at a loss for direction. However when I finally thought to own the book for my own collection, it was no longer in print."

"My father must have obtained it in the last edition before it went out of print," Kenny said, examining the book. "If it brings back so many good memories for you, it's worth reading again. You should take it with you on your trip."

"I just may," Kai said.

"Perhaps I can see if my father would be too troubled to part with it," Kenny commented, making his way back to the desk.

"You don't have to do that," Kai replied, placing the book back in its place on the shelf. Kenny looked over his shoulder at his teacher with a big grin prior to sitting back down at the desk.

"But I want to," Kenny said, finding a blush creep to his cheeks, pressing on with the reason to the random act of kindness. "If I'm able to see you smile at something you once cherish, I think it's worth asking on your behalf. Just think of it as one of our first presents…being a couple."

Kai closed his mouth just as he was about to open it, and stared at his student. The thought of what Kenny said to him warmed Kai inside. He suppose it was endearing remarks as such which made him realize he couldn't have pretended that he didn't feel something for the teen any longer than he had already lied to himself. It would take some time –or Kenny graduating from high school, whichever came first –for him to climb over his moral wall about having a deeper relationship with Kenny, yet he knew the steps they were taking wasn't wrongful.

Striding over to Kenny, Kai tilted Kenny's head up, watching the hair fall from those shy eyes. Leaning down, Kai kissed Kenny's forehead, feeling the skin underneath his lips heat from the contact. "Thank you then for your hard work."

"You know you're teasing me again," Kenny stated, pulling back to meet his teacher's eyes.

"If you stopped being so adorable when I decide to tease you, I would not be tempted each time the opportunity comes to do so," Kai countered.

"Teasing me is going to be the death of you," Kenny announced.

"Oh, so you and Tyson are still conspiring against me for this coming school year? Me thinks I shall have to separate you both during class hours," Kai smiled.

"You really think that's going to stop us?" Kenny said widening his eyes to give emphasis he was shocked his teacher thought that was going to be the solution to everything. "Haven't I ever told you that the world could end if I'm separated from Tyson? Do you really want the fate of the world resting on your shoulders?"

"The fate of the world?" Kai raised an amused brow staring down at the teen. "So you plan to be glued to him for the rest of life to prevent the world from ending?"

"Not on your life," Kenny said.

"Then there's no problem separating you two," Kai remarked, positioning himself to sit on the edge of the desk. Tilting his head to the side, he noticed Kenny's handwriting in the book that was on the table. "Are you writing something?"

"No, I'm making a grocery list," Kenny rolled his eyes playfully. "Don't you know that's how I like to spend my free time?"

"You keep that up you little smart aleck, and I'm going to have to punish you," Kai warned.

"Yes mommy, I'll be good," Kenny chimed.

"You've been hanging out around Bryan and Tala too long," Kai sighed, with a shake of his head despairingly. "I knew it was a bad idea to allow you to spend time in their company. You use to be a model student."

"I still am," Kenny beamed. "Just not when I'm around you."

"You're going to make your teacher cry, you know that don't you Mister Shinoda?" Kai questioned.

"I figured as much," Kenny assured. "But I also figured you would get over it eventually, so I didn't lose any sleep over the situation." Kenny laughed seeing his teacher shake his head once more in the same manner as before.

"So, will I find out what you're composing, or not, you imp?" Kai said, changing the subject back to the first initial question.

"Yet another short story that lived in the deep recesses of my mind," Kenny responded. "The idea has been stuck in my head since coming back from the beach. I've finally figured out how to push it out onto paper."

"Do you mind if I read it?" Kai asked.

"It's not finished yet," Kenny answered, closing the leather bound journal that containing his short stories quickly. "Knowing me, I won't be finished for a few more days…probably while you're on your trip to Japan. You wouldn't want to read an unfinished story."

"I can wait until I come back to read it," Kai voiced. "I can do some side reading to keep me entertained long enough until I return, and if not, visiting my parents is enough of a distraction to keep me busy. So, is it a promise that I can read it when I get back?"

"You wouldn't want to," Kenny uttered, pushing himself up from the desk. Making a move to put space between him and Kai, he was surprised when his teacher caught him by the elbow, pulling him to a stop. Kenny shifted his head to find Kai's eyes on him. Kenny lowered his head to the floor, biting his bottom lip anxiously.

"Why would you speculate I wouldn't?" It was obvious the teen was still touchy over the subject of moving forward into the realm of professional writing. From Kenny's school work over the course of the young man being in his classes, Kai instantly recognized there was an enormous amount of potential brewing inside the quiet brunette.

"I…" Kenny faulted.

"Do you remember what I told you months ago?" Kai asked.

"I…"

"The foundation from which you have started may indeed come from your parents, but the bricks you are laying down will not crumble from weak mortar. The structure left after the work is finished shall be unique to the passion in your soul," Kai recited. "I still believe those words."

"It's hard," Kenny admitted. "It's hard to forget I write the way I do because of my parents who are already well established authors. If others compared my style to my parents, I don't think I would be able to push myself to keep going forward. It's scary to think how easily I can be turned down in the same manner of acceptance for my works."

"It's understandable that you have some fear, but you shouldn't allow that to get in the way of what you really love to do. You have tremendous talent, I don't want to see you let that go to waste," Kai stated.

"You really think I can do it?" Kenny gazed up at the man before him.

"Of course I know you can," Kai assured. "So, be more confident about your talent. You have nothing that you should be ashamed about creating a base structure from your parents."

"I'll try then," Kenny promised.

"That's all I'm asking for," Kai nodded, leaning down to kiss the top of Kenny's head before pulling back. The brunette flushed slightly again, smiling up at Kai who moved back. Kenny knew with such assurance on Kai's part, arguing his case was going to be futile.

"Do you have to leave soon?" Kenny questioned.

"My plane is tomorrow evening," Kai replied.

"Then…do you mind if…we have dinner tonight?" Kenny wondered. "Unless you still have to pack…"

"I don't," Kai stated. "All of my packing was done yesterday. I'm free for the rest of the evening, especially with Tala and Bryan out of the house. I would love to have dinner with you."

"I'm—" Kenny's sentence trailed off when he heard the front door to the house opening and closing. With a slight frown, Kenny left the study with Kai closely trailing behind him. It couldn't be his parents, Kenny thought, the both of them left out of town on for a book convention stating they would not be home again until the following week. Making his way down the hallway, the brunette found his parents dragging in luggage. "You two are back earlier than expected."

"Oh, Kenny, we would have notified you, but it was a sudden change. Our editors called us several hours ago to say that the rest of the convention was moved to a different date. We hopped planes and came back home without a chance to let you know," Kenny's mother said, looking at the teen with a light smile before noting the man with her son. "Oh? Mister Hiwatari, hello."

"Hello ma'am," Kai said respectfully.

"Mister Hiwatari stopped by to borrow a book or two from our collection to take with him on a trip," Kenny commented before turning his attention on his father. "He found your copy of _Seasons Between Numbers_ on the shelf, father."

"Have you read that one, Mister Hiwatari?" Kenny's father inquired, his eyes lighting up with interest.

"When I was a little younger than Kenny, I had the pleasure of coming across that book which became my greatest companion. It saved me many times from taking wrongful paths. Before I had a chance to own the book myself, it went out of print. This is the first copy I've come across in nearly twelve years," Kai replied.

"A lot of people considered it controversial for its time," Kenny's father said. "I remember when all the books were pulled from stores and libraries. I managed to snatch up a copy before they were shipped into a large storage warehouse to be eaten by rats."

"I was telling Mister Hiwatari I would see if you minded parting with it, he told me he read it twelve times in the length of one summer. I find that impressive, the most I've ever read a book in a short time span was perhaps five times," Kenny smiled.

"So do I," Kenny's father laughed, looking at Kai. "Since the book will find more company with someone who identified with it, I think it's a good idea to let you keep that copy."

"You really don't have to…it's one of the few remaining books left in print. I could not possibly ask you to part ways with it," Kai shook his head.

"Nonsense," Kenny's father shook his head. "It's been sitting on my shelf since before Kenny was born doing nothing but occasionally being dusted off. I insist you have the book. It's in better company with you, Mister Hiwatari."

"Are you certain sir?" Kai blinked.

"Of course, it's yours," Kenny's father nodded.

"I figured that you wouldn't mind," Kenny spoke up. "Mister Hiwatari was being paranoid about me asking."

"Paranoid?" Kai gave the younger male a playful reprimanding stare. "You do remember that your teacher can give you extra work for such remarks, don't you?"

"I thought you were off duty?" Kenny inquired.

"That doesn't mean I won't forget this by the time school starts back," Kai stated.

"You're not a very good friend anymore then," Kenny said. "I think I'll stick with Tyson then."

"You two get along well," Kenny's mother observed. "It's like Kenny has a big brother now, don't you think, honey?"

"I wouldn't want an older brother like Mister Hiwatari," Kenny said. "He's threatening to give me homework. I think that's not the thing an older brother is allowed to do." Besides on a secondary note, Kenny thought to himself, having an older brother like Kai would definitely get him in trouble on more than one moral level. He could live with being gay; a physical attraction leading to incest was definitely on a more immoral basis than what he cared to go.

"They really do get on well," Kenny's father laughed.

"Mister Hiwatari, you really must stay for dinner since you're here," Kenny's mother replied.

"Honey, Mister Hiwatari should probably get going, I'm sure he still has much to do," Kenny's father remarked.

"No, it's fine," Kai assured. "I would love to take up that offer for dinner. I will have nothing to do when I head for home."

"Good! Make self at home then, Mister Hiwatari," Kenny's mother beamed.

"Please, ma'am just call me Kai, there's no need to be so formal with me," Kai said, a soft smile rising to his lips.

"Then you can call me Jayna," Kenny's mother said, returning his smile, before turning her attention back to Kenny. "Kenny, why don't you take Kai to the living room? Once your father and I take our luggage upstairs we'll be right down."

"Yes mother," Kenny nodded.

_**---oooo---**_

The evening seemed to progress well; Kai being able to speak with one of his favorite writers over dinner towards his publications swept more than half of the dinner away. Kenny's father seemed to take an even better liking to the young teacher when the discussion turn from modern literature to the classic poets and storywriters long gone. By the time dessert came around, things were finally winding down, and it seemed that Kenny's mother was now ready to interrogate the man, at least that's how it seemed to Kenny who was enjoying his apple cobbler with a scoop of ice cream and whip cream.

"So, tell us about yourself, Kai." Kenny's mother sat her fork down, her eyes sweeping across the table to where Kai sat on Kenny's right hand side. "Are you an only child?"

"I have no brothers or sisters however I have two childhood friends I often consider as close to brothers than anyone else I know," Kai smiled, thinking about the two maniacs who he wouldn't trade for anyone else in the world despite how often they drove him insane.

"The kind of friendship I have with Tyson?" Kenny wondered.

"Once it may have been such, now their very presences disturbs any peace my soul tries to grasp onto," Kai shook his head.

"You should be careful they never hear that," Kenny laughed.

"It shall never reach their ears," Kai promised, giving the brunette a quick sideways glance of warning. Kenny ducked his head down, going back to the apple cobbler on his plate.

"Did you graduate from one of the local schools, or did you decide to move here to teach?" Kenny's father inquired, leaning back in his chair.

"I temporarily lived in Arizona for the first two years of my life then moved to Japan until I was six. Then I was settled here, of course I went to school in Greensboro, I did student teaching in Virginia and South Carolina for half a year. When I finally graduated, I decided I would work in Durham," Kai replied.

"What made you want to be a teacher in the first place?" The question came from Kenny's mother who was not yet done sating her curiosity over the young teacher.

"I suppose I have my grandfather to thank for that. He and my grandmother raised me while my parents were always too busy working to care for me. At an earlier age, I learned how important a good education was from him. I remember him always saying 'Kai, the world does not move for you unless you make an effort to move it yourself'," Kai replied. "Grandfather imparted in me the desire to want the world to move when I pushed.

"My decision in wanting to become a teacher came later in life, when I was a little older and my mind considered all the possibilities I could utilize the knowledge acquired thus far in my life. I do believe the first thoughts of teaching came my tenth grade year when I found myself taking several English based courses."

"It's so rare now and days for children to have that sort of mind set," Kenny's father said. "Everywhere you turn, they are involved in meaningless activities. Challenging their mind seems like a waste of time, and parents just overlook how an appreciation for the pursuit of knowledge is slipping away."

"I understand what you mean," Kai chuckled. "If it wasn't for your son, I would have given up on the prospect that children now and days sought out MTV for all their educational needs. I have been blessed to come across Kenny."

"Are you trying to embarrass me in front of my parents?" Kenny said a tingle of red showing around his ears.

"I find nothing wrong in praising your bright mind it has saved me from losing my own in teaching. I don't know what I'm going to do when you graduate," Kai sighed.

'_Hopefully you will praise me in other ways_,' Kenny thought, the corner of his mouth twitching into a small grin. Kenny couldn't wait to be able to take this relationship pass the platonic nature they were so use to, and the fact he had two more high school years left. Looking up from his thoughts, he found a pair of auburn eyes studying him curiously sideways. A light brow cocked in wonder at what was going through the younger male's head.

"We're hoping that he will decide to follow a similar path as we did when he graduates," Kenny's mother said, giving Kenny a meaningful look. Kenny averted his eyes, knowing the talk about him publishing a book was coming up soon. No matter what, it was going to come and they were going to keep pushing at him to do it until he gave up writing- which he knew would never happen because he loved it too much. Or he would give in to them and finally decide to give some half assed story to his parents' editors who would definitely turn it down in disbelief he could write such unoriginal garbage.

"I think Kenny will follow a good path no matter what he decides to do," Kai spoke up with a light smile. "He's been talking to me about becoming a teacher."

"He has?" Kenny's father blinked.

"I've been thinking about being a college professor," Kenny stated, taking Kai's lead towards distracting his parents. "Mister Hiwatari's inspired me from his teaching."

"Really?" Kai blinked. "I didn't know you had considered a particular profession within that category."

"It's amazing how you can direct us towards where you want. I think that sort of ability is impressive," Kenny nodded. "Of course teaching high school or even junior high school students would wear on my patience, I see what you go through with Tyson. College students lack the immaturity given to their younger counterparts."

"In most cases," Kai chuckled. "Sometimes it latches on and refuses to let go. I'm certain, however that you will be able to make them listen to you."

"I think you will be a good teacher also, Kenny" the boy's mother smiled. "You know that your father and I will support whatever you decide to do in life. Even though we really wish that you would give publishing a book a shot."

"Perhaps later in life," Kenny said.

"Kai, do you have a girlfriend?" Kenny's mother wondered.

"A girlfriend…I'm afraid I don't," Kai replied.

"Why not? A smart, handsome young man like you is still single? I just can't believe it," the woman teased. "I know many young women who would jump at a chance to find a qualified young man to eventually get married to."

"Jayna!" Kenny's father said.

"It's all right, my grandfather invites me to parties with his business associates all the time with single daughters seeking marriage, I'm use to it by now," Kai assured.

"See, Alwran," Kenny's mother chimed. "If you want Kai, I can give my little circle of friends a call. They have very nice daughters and nieces who would be right up your alley. Latrice Kirner, one of the woman I occasionally collaborate with, has a daughter who just went back to school for another degree. She was working as a veterinarian since graduating from college five years ago, but now she's working to become a RN."

"It must be a lot of work," Kai thought.

"I can imagine, there's so much she has to learn," the woman said. "But she's been single for at least two years now. Bless her soul the man she thought she was going to eventually marry was having an affair with a friend of hers. Poor thing has been broken up over it since he went on to marry that girl. She could use a bit of lifting up, if you are interested, Kai."

"I don't think I'm the best person to do that," Kai spoke up. "I'm not very good when it comes to relationships. I, myself haven't been in a relationship since college. After that person, I've been reluctant to get involved again."

"Now is the best time to get back out there and date. You'll never find that person you want to be with if you don't stick your head out and look around every now and then," the woman commented. "I remember when I first met Alwran. I was the shyest thing in the world. I kept pushing every guy away who sought to date me, all because I didn't want to be hurt. But, my husband was persistent, no matter how many times I said no, he would come back to ask me again and again. Eventually, I gave him the chance, and I haven't regretted it once."

"I understand what you are saying," Kai nodded.

"Think about the offer then," the woman smiled. "It wouldn't hurt to consider it, and just think if you fall in love with her and consider marriage, then everyone wins. You will be glad you decided to give it a chance."

"I promise I will consider it," Kai assured, before getting up from the table. "Thank you for the meal. I would love to continue this, but it is getting late, and I should get home."

"Oh my, it's already after ten," Kenny's mother gasped looking at the clock on the wall. "You're right, it is getting late. Please come back and have dinner with us again, some time, Kai."

"I shall, I enjoyed the evening very much," Kai smiled.

"I'll walk Mister Hiwatari out," Kenny volunteered, polishing off the last bit of dessert on his plate and stood up, pushing away from the table. Kai looked down at him, smiling.

"Thank you very much Kenny." The teacher and his student headed out of the dining room as Kenny's parents got up from the table to clear away the dishes. When the two were finally outside, Kenny chuckled slightly, walked the path of the driveway to Kai's car.

"Plan to take my mother up on that offer?" Kenny teased.

"That sweet woman is only looking out for my best interest," Kai laughed. "It's touching to have an experience like that. My own mother would never be so considered as to do something like that unless it benefits her."

"Considering they know think of you as another son, you can have all the experiences you want like that. It's going to be murder on me when I'm finally your age and hear those types of things."

"Do you plan to tell them one day?" Kai questioned, stopping at the driver's side of the car.

"About my attraction to men?"

"Yes," Kai nodded.

"I don't know…possibly when they realize that I've never brought a girl home or dated one. Does your family know?" Kenny looked up at his teacher, leaning against the side of the car.

"My parents heard from my grandfather who has been trying to convert me for years. Once he even went as far as to buy me a professional. I think as long as he's breathing, he's going to try. He wants me to take over his business when the time comes, so having a wife seems important for that," Kai sighed.

"What are you going to do?" Kenny frowned.

"I'll come to that bridge when I have to. For now, I will live in the present," Kai said, reaching down to brush aside Kenny's hair to look in his eyes. "It does no good to fret over the future. He might change down the road, and it won't matter that I'm attracted to a cute face like yours."

"There you go flirting again," Kenny blushed.

"I thought you liked me flirting with you?" Kai asked.

"Perhaps," Kenny said, stepping closer to the older man. His pulse quickened, looking up at Kai, finding those wine colored eyes flickering in the darkness. Kenny's heart hammered against his chest when Kai leaned down, kissing the top of his head. He longed for his teacher to be bold enough to kiss him like they really had a relationship. "Kai…"

"Hm?" Kai said, pulling back a little.

"C-can…can you…" Kenny stammered, turning bright red.

"Can I?" Kai urged.

"Can you…kiss…me good night?" Kenny forced out.

"I just did," Kai laughed quietly.

"No…I mean…on the lips," Kenny whispered. "I want you to kiss me on my lips."

For a long moment, the two of them stood silently. Kenny holding his breath as Kai stared down at him, indistinctiveness dancing behind his eyes. Perhaps he shouldn't have put the older into such a position. Kai must be uncomfortable now, and trying to figure out a way around it.

"You don't have to use your tongue," Kenny blurted out breaking the silence, his face heating up. "It…just a simple kiss…on the lips…that's all I'm asking for."

"I'm sorry, Kenny," Kai said, moving back.

"I…I'm sorry for making you uncomfortable," Kenny said. "I…have a nice trip Kai. I'll see you when school starts." Moving from his teacher, Kenny rushed away from the car, making his way back to the house. Kai watched the boy go, wanting to chase after him, but he just couldn't get his legs to go. Cursing under his breath, he laid his head against the roof of the car, staring at the quarter moon.

It wasn't that he didn't want to kiss the boy. It was more so he knew that if he had, he might not have been able to stop himself from wanting more. He had promised himself to wait until the boy was older to before they took things to that sort of level, however at times it really was torture on his self control and morality. The way Kenny had looked up at him wanting that kiss…

"Will I be able to last out until he graduates?" Kai sighed, eventually pushing himself up to unlock his car door and get in. The coming school year and the year after that was going to be a real test of patience for him, he saw that already.

**_------oooooo-------_**

Rim: Finally finished with this chapter. Hm, I see that I'm going to have issues with Kai and his good morality with the coming of the next few chapters. It's going to be interesting to see exactly what's going to happen from here on out.


	21. Chapter 19

Rim: I have no idea where I'm going with this chapter, it's sort of a secondary part to the last chapter that I originally was going to put in, but I decided to split it up and make the new school year part into another chapter. Let's see where this will lead. And thanks to everyone, so far who has reviewed, your support and feedback is always appreciated. Here's the first new chapter of the new year.

**_-----oooooo------_**

_Part 19_

Kenny stared at his reflection in the mirror, brushing aside a wayward fringe of hair only to have it fall back into place seconds later. Shoving it aside again, the stubborn hair reassembled itself in its place no sooner than he lowered his hand.

"That haircut did nothing to this," Kenny sighed, giving up the fight knowing that his hair was going to have its way no matter what. Studying his image in the mirror, he sighed. He looked pretty much the same as he did last year, the only difference between the years being he was hoping that Kai would notice a difference.

Kai Hiwatari was an English teacher who taught at the same school Kenny attended. It was during Kenny's freshmen year at the school that the crush on Kai first developed. There had been something about Kai even back then which Kenny's heart would never let him get over. As more time went by- another school year, another class in which Kai taught- Kenny was more than certain his infatuation for the older man was not a simple phase.

Of course he never intended for Kai to find out about his feelings. He was certain his teacher would not care to have a student pining after him. Besides, Kenny was a minor after all, and Kai's student. Those types of relationships never went over well, so Kenny kept his feelings to himself. Until Tyson intervened, handing over a forgotten love letter Kenny had not destroyed. That single event led to mutual liking, if not a slightly platonic relationship standing between them.

"Hey, how long are you planning to stand in the mirror primping yourself?" Behind him Tyson leaned against the bathroom doorway munching on a bacon and egg sandwich meant for Kenny. "Your breakfast is getting cold."

"You're eating my breakfast," Kenny pointed out.

"There's still another sandwich downstairs with your name on it," Tyson said between bites. "So, are you done in here, or do you want to take the mirror with you to school to finish this up?"

"It's impossible to do anything with it," Kenny replied, shuffling away from the mirror. Walking up to Tyson, he grabbed the sandwich from his best friend, taking a bite out of it.

"Well taking my sandwich isn't going to make your hair better. I don't know why you just don't get it styled or something. It would definitely be more manageable than it is now," Tyson commented, snatching his sandwich back from Kenny.

"It's my sandwich in the first place," Kenny reminded.

"Your sandwich before I made it my own," Tyson corrected. "So, are you done primping yourself? As much as I enjoy summer vacation, it's not going to go well if we try to extend it. Besides, I don't think Mr. Hiwatari is going to think any less of you if your hair is the same as before."

"I know," Kenny sighed.

"Your mind still on what happened before he left on that trip?" Tyson said.

"I'm over it," Kenny said.

"You sure?" Tyson studied his friend who turned back to the mirror momentarily. Deciding that no amount of brushing, combing, or even mousse was going to impact the fringe, Kenny slipped past Tyson out of the bathroom, heading towards the stairs. Tyson followed behind him, a slight frown turning his mouth downwards. "Kenny? Are you certain?"

"Yes, yes, now stop asking me," Kenny said, a hint of irritation arising. Of course he wasn't over what happened during summer break. But dwelling over it would place him in a more sullen disposition than he would like going back to school seeing Kai. If the older male knew that Kenny was still thinking about it, he would be bothered by it. Starting out a new school year with something as trivial as not getting a kiss was no way to start things out.

"You don't have to snap my head off," Tyson huffed. "I'm just trying to look out for you, and if it means giving him a good slap over the head, then well who am I to—"

"Get suspended the first day back?" Kenny finished.

"All for the greater cause," Tyson nodded.

"Your father, brother, grandfather, and anyone else that can get their hands on you will kill you, including me," Kenny stated. "Really Tyson, thanks for worrying, but I'm fine."

"Well if you say so, then I'll take your word for it," Tyson said.

"Sometimes, you're genuinely arcane," Kenny smiled, turning to see the puzzlement in Tyson's eyes. "It means impossible to understand. How are you really going to make it through yet another English class that way Tyson?"

"The same way I've been struggling, pledging to give you my first born child in exchange for knowledge," Tyson grinned, causing Kenny to once more chuckle at his best friend. Entering into the kitchen, Kenny found his mother cleaning up.

"Mom, I'm heading out," Kenny said, grabbing his backpack from a chair along with his other sandwich.

"Have a good first day you two," Kenny's mother smiled, turning to them briefly.

"We'll try," Kenny and Tyson said concurrently, leaving the area. At the moment Kenny's father was out doing research for an upcoming short story scheduled to appear in a literary magazine. Kenny's father had tried pestering Kenny into giving him a story to have published also in order to get his son known as a newcomer writer, but the brunette once again refused. Of course if his father had a say in it, Kenny would eventually give in to the request.

"Hey, how about we make a bet about how many kids are going to be running around looking freaked out today," Tyson spoke up for the first time in some time two blocks away from where the school was.

"I'm not starting this game with you. I remember last year when you told that group of kids on their way to gym not to look the PE teacher straight in the eyes or he might snap," Kenny said, thinking about the poor kids who had turned green when Tyson fibbed towards 'grueling activities they would be embarking on'.

"I didn't think they would believe me!" Tyson laughed.

"Try not to scare any kids this year," Kenny shook his head.

"Oh come on why not?" Tyson gaped.

"Because if we have to see one more freshman burst into tears, they are going to eventually rebel against us. Try to act more your age this year, we're juniors now," commented Rei who was walking up with Max in tow to join the two. Tyson stuck his tongue out at Rei, who rolled his eyes. "This is what I'm talking about Tyson."

"Tyson never grows up," Max said. "The day that happens is the day hell freezes over."

"This year might be the year I kill you both," Tyson glowered, swiping at Max who easily moved out of the way. "I swear you are not making it to your next birthday."

"You said that last year, you never followed up with your threat," Kenny reminded.

"Don't make me start in on you either," Tyson warned.

"I'm not trying to get involved, I'm just stating a fact," Kenny voiced.

"It's not welcomed, so why don't you run on to school and—" Before Tyson could finish the sentence, he found Kenny's backpack slamming into his legs, nearly tripping him. Yelping in pain, Tyson scowled at his best friend who was mimicking the action. "What was that for?"

"I think you know." Kenny replied, slinging the bag on his back once more.

"I wasn't going to mention that, for your information!" Tyson exclaimed. "Don't get bent out of shape because you're going on the fritz by yourself."

"I thought I told you I'm not agitated," Kenny commented.

"Well you could fool me," Tyson snorted. "Do you know how much that hurts? What do you have in there anyway?"

"Materials for school, something you never seem to have."

"Did you buy out _Office Max_?" Tyson hissed.

"You deserve it," Kenny said.

"I didn't even mention it!" Tyson argued.

"Mention what?" Max asked curiously.

"Nothing," Kenny said, speeding up to put space between him and Tyson. Tyson grumbled slightly, stopping to reach down and rub his legs. Max and Rei stopped in their tracks, looking at where Kenny was continuing on without them then back to Tyson.

"Someone seems agitated today, what did you do to Kenny?" Max inquired.

"I didn't do anything to him, he was already agitated before arrived," Tyson voiced. "And before either of you start up, I'm not the cause of it either."

"We know it's not really our business towards your personal love lives, but it's been nagging us, so we want to know, it wasn't a lovers' quarrel right?" Rei questioned, his gold eyes flickering.

"Is that what you two are always whispering about when I'm not paying attention?" Tyson asked rolling his eyes. "You two are worst than a pair of old ladies without nothing to do but gossip. It was not a lover's quarrel or anything relatively close to it."

"You still haven't confessed to him how you feel, have you? You've had all summer to do it," Max shook his head. "Rei and I get tired of wondering when you will stop being such a blockhead and realize it."

"What's this, an episode of _Doctor Phil_?" Tyson frowned. "For the record, Kenny's like a brother to me, he thinks of me the same way."

"You never thought about going out with him?" Rei blinked.

"Not once in the history of our friendship," Tyson shook his head.

"That's a shocker. We always thought that by college you would be going out," Max admitted.

"Not a chance. Do you really believe he would accept me on that sort of level? He'd sooner turn straight," Tyson said amusedly. "Come on let's catch up with that volatile friend of mine."

Watching the bluenette go back to walking, Max and Rei looked at each other, before smiling. Perhaps it was just a cover so they wouldn't be teased. Tyson and Kenny had a lot more chemistry than the two of them knew.

In the meantime of that talk, Kenny had made it to the steps of the school, stopping momentarily to see if Tyson, Max, or Rei were close behind him. Not spotting the three, Kenny sighed continuing on into the school building where there was a crowd of kids looking around uncertainly wandering around aimlessly. Perchance he was being just a little emotional and irritated by the events of summer…then again, he could throw it off as being Tyson's fault. No matter what, the bluenette would chalk it up to being Kai's fault, and forgive him. Feeling a little better-and guilty-about this notion he began weaving through the bustle of new students, boisterous chatter, and returning kids stationed in the hallways.

Kenny's feet carried him up stairs to the second floor where most of the literary subjects held class. Turning down the first hallway on the left hand side once he was past long window panels where more kids were clustered around jabbering about their summer vacation, Kenny peered up at the name markers beside each door, he eventually discovered Kai's classroom for the year. Popping his head inside, he looked around, finding that Kai was not there yet.

Before Kenny could turn around and leave, he heard someone say "You should get to your homeroom boy since you seem to have so much free time."

Recognizing Coach Parker's voice immediately, Kenny composed himself as he turned to face the teacher. As usual, the red head's eyes seethed with dislike, a scowl depressing the corners of the PE teacher's mouth. Lucky for the both of them Kenny abstained from taking any physical education classes in order to stay out of the man's kill zone. If the man ever found out that Kai was now in agreement with Kenny's feelings, hell would most definitely sweep through the school behind it. The last thing Kenny wanted was Kai being fired from his job, and his own sexual orientation to be brought to light.

"Good morning Coach Parker," Kenny said neutrally. "I hope your summer vacation was a good one."

"It was fine," Michael replied, shifting his eyes into the class room. "It's obvious that you don't want to talk to me, you came to see Mister Hiwatari didn't you?"

"I was going to wish him a good morning and ask how his summer break was," Kenny said. "I hope it's not much trouble, since my homeroom is the next hall over anyway. I still have plenty of time before the bell rings after all."

"Don't think you're going to get away with doing what you want this year, boy," Michael snapped, turning slightly red. "I'm going to be watching you carefully."

"I didn't do what I wanted to last year, so you have no need to watch my every step. It's called harassment after all," Kenny replied.

"Are you threatening me?"

"Are you threatening me?" Kenny cocked his head to the side, meeting the dark eyes seething with jealousy amongst other things. "I suggest we just call it a truce. There's no point in getting worked up over nothing."

Michael was about to open his mouth to snap at the brunette when Kai walked out another classroom across the hall being followed by a woman with short mousy hair appearing to be blushing fiercely. Michael closed his mouth as Kai bid the woman a wave and walked over to where the two were standing once noticing them; worry temporarily flitted in those auburn depths, replaced quickly with annoyance picking up the atmosphere.

"Good morning Mister Parker, I hope you are not starting off the new school year continuing from last year?" Kai sighed.

"He started—" Michael immediately begun.

"You are old enough not to be baited by childish remarks," Kai interrupted. "I don't have time to babysit this year, so please learn to settle things on your own."

"He wouldn't accept my truce," Kenny said, crossing his arms over one another. "I don't want to have to start off the new school term with such animosity towards me."

"Kai, he's just—"

"Mister Parker," Kai said sternly.

"This isn't over boy." Making a hasty exit from the scene, Kenny waited until the red head was out of sight before looking up at his teacher who was rubbing his temples.

"And it begins."

"You weren't helping," Kai shook his head.

"I tried to throw in a truce," Kenny spoke up.

"I'm going to end up insane, I just know it," Kai groaned. "Between you, Michael, our Vice Principal, and half the female population of the school…"

"Hey Kenny, there you are!" Tyson jogged up to Kenny and Kai. "Morning Mister Hiwatari, I think we have another class together this semester!"

"And Mister Kinomiya," Kai added in desperately.

"What about me?" Tyson blinked.

"You factor into my loss of sanity before the school year ends," Kai clarified.

"You know…teachers aren't supposed to say that about their students!" Tyson voiced.

"Unless it's true," Kai chuckled.

"You know, if you really want me to drive you insane, I will," Tyson threatened.

"And I will make sure I give you extra homework every night."

"You can't do that! It's illegal!" Tyson gaped.

"My classroom is not a democracy," Kai said simply, sparing Tyson a glance.

"Kenny, you're my witness to this injustice, right?" The bluenette turned his attention to his friend, who seemed more interested in a cluster of giggling girls who kept eyeing Kai as they walked by. "Kenny?"

"I don't know, after earlier, I can just turn a blind eye and say I didn't notice anything unusual happening," Kenny thought.

"You're cruel! I told you I wasn't going to mention that, and you're still being grumpy. It wasn't on my mind to even mention it in the first place," Tyson huffed before turning his attention towards the older male. "You're nothing but trouble, Mister Hiwatari. Come on Kenny, they changed our homeroom class, it's now downstairs, we should get going if we want to find it on time."

"I guess we'll see you later in class then," Kenny said, the remark directed towards Kai who nodded.

Kai watched Tyson drag Kenny down the hall, the two disappearing around the corner out of sight. For a long minute, Kai stood staring at the spot where Kenny had disappeared from his sight. He had wanted to ask the brunette if he was free during the lunch period to talk. He supposed it was fine. Vice Principal Balcov had already gotten on his case the moment he stepped into the teacher's lounge. Kai was to "behave like a teacher" instead of "a dog in heat" and allowing things to 'obscure' his better judgment. Needless to say, it only meant that the vice principal was going to breath down his back if he so much as caught the scent of any illicit actions taking place.

"Mister Hiwatari?"

"Hm?" Pulling his thoughts from his situation with his student, Kai looked down to find Emily looking up at him.

"Homeroom will begin soon," the girl informed.

"In just a few," Kai agreed, checking his watch.

"Did you have a good summer, Mister Hiwatari?" Emily inquired.

"It was quite eventful, I suppose," Kai said, with a small smile before his mind went over the last time he had saw Kenny before his trip. The thought of Kenny's request immediately came to mind; a thought which plagued him these past few weeks gone. Kenny seemed like he was okay about it now, then again looks could be deceiving. Under the surface, for all Kai knew, Kenny was feeling insecure towards their relationship not at all Kai's intentions to do so.

"Oh?" Emily smiled. "I'm glad you had a fun summer, mind wasn't so bad either."

"I'm glad," Kai said, returning her smile. "You should get along to class. The bell should be ringing soon."

"All right, Mister Hiwatari. See you later!" Emily went across the hall to her homeroom as a group of giggling girls passed Kai entering his classroom. Almost out of earshot he could hear them going on about him. The number of freshmen who crushed on him never failed to cease each year, and in the end, there was always going to be one or two who confessed to him.

Those few students were his major concern of course; his thoughts were laden by Kenny. He was absolutely going to have to figure out the line to draw between separating the brunette as a student and a love interest. His own emotions were beginning to conflict, down the road if he didn't have things figured out…

_**-----oooooo-----**_

Rim: I know what sort of note I stopped this chapter on. It's only because of where I'm kicking the next chapter to. I supposed you could call this chapter a sort of filler since I really just didn't want to bother with this chapter, but it would have made the next transition weird without it. Oh well, what can I do, sometimes you just end up with those types of chapters, moving onwards!


End file.
